American History

» JohnCrandall - Whoops! My Face Is Red.

No worries. I'm not perfect, and I was discussing some very complex issues, so inconsistencies are possible. Anyway, as far as that aspect of militarized government it seems that you are talking about a secret police power such as Stalin so famously used his KGB for. In that sense, I think Americans should be really worried about the Patriot Act, and the potential domestic powers it gives to the CIA which was originally designed to function only internationally. I don't think it is that serious just yet, but it is no doubt a bad precedent, and should be fought as Thomas Jefferson fought the Alien and Sesition Acts. Like Jefferson knew, the right to habeas corpus (think italics), or not being imprisoned for any significant period without a public trail, is very important, and this Act suspends that Constitutionally guaranteed right for anybody deemed a "terrorist" which is a word dangerously lacking definition in that legislation.

-- posted by JohnCrandall