US Vice President Joe Biden arrives in Auckland tonight, and in anticipation of his visit, the Civil Aviation Authority has declared a "no fly zone" over central Auckland until he leaves. The prohibited area includes Auckland hospital, so if you're unlucky enough to be in a serious accident and require airial evacuation to Auckland, tough shit - some self-important foreigner's safety is apparently more important than yours. If this is the price of US VIP visits, then I'm thinking that its not worth it. Sorry, but the "prestige" have having some foreign would-be overlord show his face here isn't worth a single life.
I'm also wondering whether Biden's bodyguards are armed, or whether they will be obeying New Zealand law and leaving their guns at the border. I can't really imagine the latter, but there seems to be no statutory authority for foreign protection staff to carry guns (and I don't think we'd want them to be either; our police are trigger-happy enough, but Americans are another level entirely). So, are they just ignoring the law? Sadly, I think the police will refuse to answer, even though its a basic question of accountability. But if the police won't answer, maybe someone should ask Biden...?