🚀 go-pugleaf

I am struck by the government's gradual process of eroding our 
freedoms.

One noteable one is the right of freedom from illegal search and seizure.
Blamed on the war on drugs, local, state and federal law enforcement
agencies can seize personal effects and benifit from them prior to a
conviction, and if there was no conviction, only return the items
seized after a successful civil suit.

Law enforcement agents can enter a building without prior warning.

If you are stopped for a traffic violation, the police cannot search
your vehicle without probable cause.  If they ask to search your vehicle,
they can if you allow the search.  If you deny them permission to search,
_That is probable cause_!  They can then forcibly search your vehicle without
a search warrant.  (Maybe it's that they can detain you until they get
one, the point is they'll get to search it if they want to.)

Now, we're supposed to roll over and let ourselves and our electronic
privacy be compromised?  The arguement might well be that if we try
to hide our conversations from open view, we must be trying to hide
something illegal.

While I don't want to compare anyone in, or trying to enter government to
Hitler, it is interesting to point out that Hitler came to power by
thumping on the crime issue.

Also, while the current government might be relatively benign and not
abuse its power (anybody want to bet otherwise?  I won't argue.) the
realization must be made - provided it's not obvious - that the _next_
government might not be as tolerant as the current one.

Robert Heinlein predicted some years ago that the US government would
become a religious tyranny by the turn of the century.

Here, in Washington state (any others?) many of the Republican Caucases
were dominated by Fundamentalists who had pre-decided who their delegates
were going to be, much to the chagrin of the 'normal' Republicans who
attended and were ignored.

If we are to maintain our electronic privacy, we'd best start now with
an offensive to generate and sponsor legislation that will prevent the
possibility of the government, whoever controls it, cannot usurp the
freedoms we still maintain and recover those we have recently lost.


-- 
Rick Pavek                       | Never ask a droid to outdo its program.
kuryakin@bcstec.ca.boeing.com    |           
Seattle, WA                      |   It wastes your time
                                 |          and annoys the droid.