The administration too often has told congressional and other critics to just trust it, that of course it values civil liberties. But hours before the Senate vote, the New York Times reported that Bush had secretly authorized the National Security Agency to eavesdrop on Americans and foreigners — without getting a warrant.
So much for "trust us."
[Larry] Craig, [Russ] Feingold and the other senators who stopped the Patriot Act reauthorization want to defeat terrorists just as much as Bush does. But they also understand there is no victory if we radically redefine freedom as something we treasure only when it is convenient. Theirs is a profound patriotism. It should be applauded.
Sunday, December 18, 2005
GREAT SUNDAY READ
Robert Leger, the editorial-page editor at the News-Leader, has the best read in Sunday's paper. His column about the patriots who voted down the continuation of much of the Patriot Act is solid; check these grafs:
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2 comments:
The problem with those who care nothing about liberties is they're usually the ones who cry loudest when they come to the realization that they're own have been taken away.
Thank the universe leveler heads prevailed in the Patriot Act vote. But then again, what does it matter, we're all being tracked by our cell phones any way.
You can turn that tracking off you know. Well, to some extent at least. There's still always basic triangulation, but I digress...
Sheep. Americans en-mass (often) = Sheep.
A large and unthinking herd that only wants to be fed and protected.
A reconstruction from a not so distant conversation:
"Handguns? Deadly and dangerous, ban em' all, I says!
Rights? Fahgettabout'em! If you not dooin' anythin' wrong, you don't need no stinkin' rights! Whatcha need protection fo' if you doin' whatcha 'sposed ta be doin'?
We gotta stop these terrorist, man.
Don'tcha see that we don't need no privacy or the right to protect ourselfs with weapons - if you doin' whatcha 'sposed to be doin', ya got nothin' ta worry 'bout! Tha police and tha' governmemt got us all covered. Ain't they always? Juss put your head down; don't make any trouble, and well all be juss fine. Truss me. That's what bein' American is all about, man.
You juss let tha cops n' the government take care of you an' don' worry 'bout it none. They'll take care of it for us all."
I didn't even bother to reply. I just double checked to make sure that none of the 9mm I carry was showing and nodded my head like I understood and agreed with it all.
Let’s hope that some of the chaos set loose upon us by our government is starting to be reigned back in. I think rescinding the Patriot act is a nice start.
Now, if we can get congress to do something about that retarded DMCA...
Of course after that there's the whole copyright extension issue, whatever the hell it is they've done with the brains of the humans responsible for the patent office...
*shambles off mumbling incessantly about something no one really listens to anyways*
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