5.  FREEDOM'S MOST DANGEROUS ENEMY - PART 2
    by Mike Ferguson 
    Special to TLE      http://www.webleyweb.com/tle/>     Issue 205
    See Part One at
    http://www.webleyweb.com/tle/libe203-20021216-06.html> or at
    http://www.geocities.com/michaelaferguson/mypage2.html>


I am often criticized for being so outspoken in defense of personal
freedom, especially in these times of terrorism and the government's effort
to "secure the homeland". Tragically, far too many Americans have
joined lock-step in George W. Bush's march towards a complete police state
and too few Americans are willing to speak up and defend our Constitutional
freedoms.

In my first article on this subject, I explained why President Bush's
efforts to shred the Constitution are more dangerous than Osama Bin Laden
will ever be. The mindless explanation we keep hearing (recently from
Attorney General John Ashcroft on CNN's "Larry King Live") is
that our freedom and Constitutional rights must be curtailed in order to
protect...our freedom.

First, the President tried to enlist hundreds of thousands of postal
workers, utility meter readers, cable installers, trash collectors, bank
tellers and anyone else who has the opportunity to look into any aspect of
your private life to become a de facto government agents under the T.I.P.S.
program. Then, Bush commissioned the building of the "Total
Information Awareness" project. This program, if successfully built,
will allow the government to monitor, track and prepare a database on every
single business, travel and financial
transaction of everyone in America. John Poindexter has been appointed to
lead the development of this program. Clearly, both the T.I.P.S. and T.I.A.
programs violate the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution, which preserves
our right to be secure from any government intrusion into our lives until
after the government can show, in court, that there is "probable
cause" that we are involved in a crime that has been committed.

Now, the President is working on another way to decimate the Fourth
Amendment. As part of the White House's "National Strategy to Secure
Cyberspace", President Bush has begun an effort to require all
internet service providers to build a centralized system that will allow
government surveillance of everyone's email and internet activity (see
http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/4779109.htm>). This
program, if successfully put into place, will be built by the internet
service providers but will be administered by the government. This, again,
is being pursued in the name of "homeland security".

Defenders of this monstrosity will probably claim that since internet
service providers will build the system and not the government, that it
meets Constitutional merit. The idea behind this is that since both the
service providers and their customers are in the private sector, then the
government will not be violating our right to privacy. This claim, of
course, is ridiculous. Forcing the internet industry to spy on Americans is
the same thing as having the government administer the espionage directly.
Both take away Americans' right to be "...secure in their persons,
houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and
seizures," (Amendment IV, US Constitution). Simply put, it is
unconstitutional for the government to directly or indirectly search any
aspect of our private lives without a court-ordered warrant.

Tragically, this marks George W. Bush's third blatant attempt to remove our
Fourth Amendment rights.

Imagine living in a nation where the government can declare you an enemy at
any time and for any reason. Now, imagine that government bestowing upon
itself the right to either detain you with no access to an attorney or
shoot and kill you outright without any formal charges, a trial or a
conviction, even if you are a citizen. Frightening, isn't it?

You are not imagining anymore. That is precisely the authority our
President has given the CIA (see:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,72051,00.htm>).  Among President
Bush's many casualties in the "homeland security" efforts is the
Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The Sixth Amendment is
the one that guarantees American citizens the right  "...to be
informed of the nature and cause of the accusation, to be confronted with
the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining
witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his
defense."

Please do not misunderstand me: I hate what terrorists have done to this
nation and I want them all caught and brought to justice, even if justice
is delivered with a bullet.  However, I am not willing to stand by as my
freedoms are declared null and void in the effort to track down the enemy.
I also understand that placing our Constitutional freedoms above domestic
combat goals will be an obstacle to the government. That is the way our
Founding Fathers designed the Constitution; to protect liberty above the
government's
desires, regardless of any perceived nobility of those desires. Our freedom
should never be the price of war.

War is brutal, obviously. The goal of war is simple: kill and destroy every
aspect of your enemy until your enemy must either surrender or until there
is nothing left of your enemy. That is the harsh reality of the
battlefield. President Bush and John Ashcroft, however, have declared that
U.S. soil is now part of that battlefield, that combat rules apply here and
that those rules supercede Constitutional restraints on the government.
Bush and Ashcroft have been fighting in court for the right to declare
anyone an "enemy combatant", even United States citizens living
in America, and nullify their rights guaranteed by the Constitution.
Ashcroft recently defended this effort on "Larry King Live".

The Constitutional freedoms that American citizens are entitled to do not
apply on foreign battlefields, nor do I want to see them applied there.
Here in America, though, they must be respected for all U.S. citizens and
for those immigrants who are here permanently and legally. Bush and
Ashcroft want the power to declare your rights and freedoms null and void
just by claiming you are an "enemy combatant", as in the case of
a 31-year-old Chicago man (who is an American citizen). Jose Padilla is
accused of being involved with Al Queda and was arrested initially - in
America - as a material witness and later detained as an "enemy
combatant".

Ashcroft fought in court against Padilla's Sixth Amendment right to be
represented by an attorney, regardless of the fact that Padilla is an
American citizen. Padilla may very well be involved with the terrorists, I
don't know. The point is, neither does John Ashcroft and Padilla's rights
must not be arbitrarily removed at the discretion of George W. Bush or John
Ashcroft.

You may ask why I care about Jose Padilla, a suspected terrorist. I don't,
but I care about the precedent that will be set for my freedom if the
government is allowed to remove someone else's rights out of suspicion. The
burden of proof is still on the government, and should be. Until Padilla is
convicted of being involved with the enemy, he is entitled to the full
legal rights that every other American citizen has. This is not about his
freedom, this is about your freedom and my freedom.

President George W. Bush has made his beliefs very clear. He has no respect
for the Constitution, he has no respect for Americans or for our freedoms.
George W. Bush is freedom's most dangerous enemy. He is a man unfit to be
President of the United States.

Since there is no hope of Congress performing its Constitutional duty and
impeaching George W. Bush, we must remember Bush's outright assault on
freedom when the 2004 election arrives. We must make certain that George W.
Bush is not reelected President. You freedom depends on it.
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All rights reserved. Permission to reprint this essay as a guest editorial,
letter to the editor, commentary or other viewpoint/opinion item is granted
under the following conditions: 1) the essay is published without edit and
2) the author is given full and proper credit.

I live in Belton, Missouri and am a self-employed financial advisor who
also works as a corporate recruiter and trainer. I am also an active member
of the Libertarian Party, currently serving as the Vice Chair of the Cass
County LP. My wife, Janeth, and I have two great kids: Austin is 6 and
Amber is 4.

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