Wake Up! Wake Up! Wake Up! Wake Up!

[groovychk]

Originally published at Twixel.net. You can comment here or there.

Help me understand this one folks.  Why does nobody care that the United States of America, the former beacon of freedom on the planet Earth, majorly changed yesterday?  Is apathy and cynicism so pervasive that you folks just don’t care anymore?  Do you think it doesn’t affect you?  I’m beside myself.  WTF????  I’m doing what very little I can do to try and point this stuff out to you folks.  This isn’t a debatable point.  This isn’t a chicken little thing.  This isn’t paranoia.  This isn’t obscure.  President Bush was given dictatorial power yesterday.  I’ve tried to be as nice as possible when I’m talking about it but this is horrific!  The new law authorizes torture - in wonderful political double-speak to make it seem as though it doesn’t.  The new law gives the Executive Branch the power to determine who is an unlawful enemy combatant.  This can be anyone.  That INCLUDES YOU.  The new law specifically removes habeas corpus, the right to petition, from alien enemy combatants.(Habeas corpus applies to everyone and is a cornerstone of our foundational principles - The Constitution specifically addresses Habeas Corpus saying it can only be suspended when the country is in danger from rebellion or invasion.  The last valid suspension of it was during the Lincoln Administration during the Civil War.  This doesn’t suspend it - it removes it. Yes - it states for aliens - but this is a principle that is supposed to apply to all.)

In Brown v. Vasquez, 952 F.2d 1164, 1166 (9th Cir. 1991), cert. denied, 112 S.Ct. 1778 (1992), the court observed that the Supreme Court has “recognized the fact that`[t]he writ of habeas corpus is the fundamental instrument for safeguarding individual freedom against arbitrary and lawless state action.’ Harris v. Nelson, 394 U.S. 286, 290-91 (1969). ” Therefore, the writ must be “administered with the initiative and flexibility essential to insure that miscarriages of justice within its reach are surfaced and corrected.” Harris, 394 U.S. at 291.

Even if a citizen still has habeas corpus - they can - if declared an unlawful enemy combatant - be sent to Guantanamo, a secret CIA prison or any other Federal prison TBD. From there they can be tortured, as long as that doesn’t involve significant bodily harm. Think abut it for a second - would you, even for a day, accept being treated this way? Even with the law on your side - would it be OK if you were in prison for a few months while this came up for review?

“(1) UNLAWFUL ENEMY COMBATANT- (A) The term `unlawful enemy combatant’ means–(i) a person who has engaged in hostilities or who has purposefully and materially supported hostilities against the United States or its co-belligerents who is not a lawful enemy combatant (including a person who is part of the Taliban, al Qaeda, or associated forces); or(ii) a person who, before, on, or after the date of the enactment of the Military Commissions Act of 2006, has been determined to be an unlawful enemy combatant by a Combatant Status Review Tribunal or another competent tribunal established under the authority of the President or the Secretary of Defense.”

Some arguments I hear…

“I’m not doing anything they’d care about.” WTF??? What kind of attitude is this about your country and what is going on? And how do you know what they’ll care about tomorrow? And another thinking point - have you ever given to charity? Do you know everywhere that charity sends its donations? Do you know all the people that created the charity? If not you could be providing aid and comfort to the enemy which would make you eligible for unlawful enemy combatant status. Granted - you wouldn’t have your right to petition removed - but you could spend days, weeks, months (hopefully not longer) in jail while you fought it.

“That’s not their (Bush’s) intention.” It doesn’t matter what their intention is - even if their intentions are saintlike and wholly American. This power is now theirs and if it isn’t struck down it is Constitution-breaking. And what about future Administrations?

“You’re a liberal Bush-hater so what you say doesn’t matter.” Um, OK. The fact that I think Bush is a blight on the United States of America (and the planet) means anything Bush does is ok. And liberal? Socially but not economically.  Ridiculous party-centric thinking. I belong to no party and abhor party-line voting. Besides - both houses of Congress voted for their respective versions of this law.

“This just doesn’t apply to me.” Typical modern thinking. We’re comfortable, we’re well fed, we have our TV or other favorite entertainments. We’ve got jobs and family to worry about. Well wake up people - this affects directly the country you are currently living in. This matters and it matters a lot.

“There’s nothing I can do about it.” Well speak up!!!! Show your disapproval. Write an e-mail or a letter or call or even visit in person with your congresspeople. SAY SOMETHING! Don’t let discomfort, fear and or apathy make you sit back and yawn while freedom dies. And for the love of everything that is right and good - V O T E. November 7. Tuesday. Three weeks. Vote vote vote vote vote. Don’t make excuses about why not to. Just frigging do it. Rationalizations about how ineffectual you’ll be are worthless.  If you aren’t registerd and can’t vote this time - REGISTER.  Please. 

Aside from that just pray to God (or whatever deity you believe in) or cross your fingers that the Supreme Court has the sense to strike this down.

–

Do you need help in knowing what to do or in how to vote or in registering or where to vote or anything? I will gladly help you out - I’m that concerned. I’ll find out what you need to know. E-mail me or call me.

 

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER TO VOTE

 

 

Comments

remember Rome?

[(Anonymous)]

Does the term Bread and Circuses mean anything to anyone.
Just keep the populace happy and distracted with small things so they don't notice what is going on.

Re: remember Rome?

[groovychk.livejournal.com]

Bread and Circuses - indeed indeed.

Bread and circuses
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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This article is about the phrase. For other uses, see Bread and circuses (disambiguation).
Bread and circuses is a derogatory phrase which can describe either government policies to pacify the citizenry, or the shallow, decadent desires of that same citizenry. In both cases, it refers to low-cost, low-quality, high-availability food and entertainment, and to the exclusion of things which the speaker considers more important, such as art, public works projects, democracy, or human rights.

It originated as the Latin phrase "panem et circenses" (literally "bread and circuses"), and is thought to have been coined by Juvenal, a Roman satiric poet of the 1st century AD, to describe the practice of Roman Emperors who gave unlimited free wheat to the poor and costly circus games as a means of pacifying the populace with food and entertainment. Juvenal bemoaned that it was a deplorable apathy towards heroism.

In fact, after Juvenal's time, the system of free or heavily subsidized food distribution was limited to a minority of Roman Citizens holding a special token (tessera) entitling them to a monthly supply of grain and olive oil from the reign of Septimus Severus. The rations were probably too small to feed a family and the receivers were not necessarily poor or in need of free food. This does not change the fact that the food supply to a city the size of Rome was of primary concern to the emperors in order to avoid popular unrest.