Stop and think for a moment about the possible implications of this wacky story:
Imagine getting arrested for just striking up a conversation about religion in public.
That’s what happened to California resident Matthew Snatchko in 2006 when the youth pastor initiated a conversation about God with three shoppers at the Roseville Galleria mall.
I have been suspicious of shopping malls for some time. There are undeniable benefits but inner city malls effectively rob us of otherwise open streets, privatise public space, restrict right of passage and make us subject to rules beyond the normal laws and bylaws of the country.
You cannot eat food, walk a dog, ride a bike, busk or enjoy buskers, hand out literature, smoke and a hundred other things we take for granted on these privatised streets, and when the mall closes we cannot walk through them but must go around them to get to where we want to be.
Everything comes at a price and we would be wise to think seriously before we give up even more of our rights just for the sake of doing a bit of shopping in comfort.
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