The Further Erosion of Your Civil Rights

Examples abound of Federal employees and agents intimidating citizens, violating their rights to free speech, and arresting people for nothing more than protesting the presence of the President in their communities. This country has come to a point where we actually have "free speech zones." When President Bush or Vice President Cheney are in a community they retrict your right to free speech to designated "zones" where you must remain or be arrested.

This isn't rumor. I've been subjected to these retrictions personally on several occaisions. It seems as Americans have tolerated these policies the perpetrators are becoming more aggressive in their pursuit of dissent. This story, passed along by a friend is really scary. Here is an excerpt:

This afternoon, drinking a cup of coffee while sitting in the Jesse Brown V.A. Medical Center on Chicago’s south side, a Veterans Administration cop walked up to me and said, “OK, you’ve had your 15 minutes, it’s time to go.”

“Huh?”, I asked intelligently, not quite sure what he was talking about.

“You can’t be in here protesting,” officer Adkins said, pointing to my Veterans For Peace shirt.

You know the rest. Handcuffed, led away to the facility’s security office past people with surprised looks on their faces, read my rights, searched, and written up.

This veteran, a man who risked all to protect, among other rights, the right to free speech, was arrested in a Veterans Administration facility for wearing a peace t-shirt. There are also numerous citations of citizens who have been pulled over by police and ticketed for the bumper stickers on their vehicles. Messages critical of the current Administration. Be careful also not to wear other offensive clothing. You know, like anything with the peace sign on it. How subversive! Imagine wanting to have peace. Perhaps you should be very careful this holiday season. If you send Christmas cards with a dove or the word Peace you may be arrested and hauled off to the brig. Or even worse the FBI may come and arrest you, hand you over to the CIA and have you " rendered to Kazahkstan for torture and interrogation. How far away are we, really, from this happening?

Jose Padilla's case has already established the precedent that President Bush can arrest you, search your home, detain you without charges, and refuse you any visitors, including your attorney, based on nothing more than suspicion. Welcome to BushWorld. Welcome to Amerika.