Thursday, September 14, 2006

This Country - Free?

I have been taking part in some fantastic discussions lately on the changes for the worst that our country has taken. This includes the Patriot Act and the National Security Policy. I will post some of these discussions later on.
However, it isn't just the National stuff we have to worry about or the stuff that we see on the news, it is the little things, mostly at the state level, that seem to help along the demise of this once great country.

For instance, the requirement you have to carry in your car a "proof of insurance"...without this proof, you can be charged fines as much as $400 (maybe more in some places) for not having the simple PROOF of insurance...it is worse if you DON'T HAVE insurance...
Here in Utah, they have a database that tracks insurance and registrations. If a registered vehicle doesn't have insurance, they send a nasty note to the owner. Instead, they should be sending someone to verify the information in person, and write a ticket for the infraction. As it is, there is lag time, time that the driver is on the road without insurance.
What ever happened to the burden of proof? Shouldn't the state have to prove that you DON'T have insurance before they can tag you? This database is a start, but it still fails to address the innocence issue.

There are even crimes that you can commit that will get you time in jail ... only, you don't actually have to commit the crime. If the police officer fails to do his/her job correctly, you could be charged with a crime...and with the waning burden of proof, you would have to prove yourself innocent...only, there is no evidence suggesting you are innocent...so you are guilty...it is a cyclical degradation of your rights.

But wait, aren't we innocent until proven guilty? Not any more. Just ask all those people being held in GITMO...they were only suspected of having terrorist ties...nothing proved, no trial, no disclosure of evidence...in fact, they cannot even retain legal services to help in their defense and release...
Can anyone say, "World War 2"? Didn't we do this with the Japanese during the last world war? But at least then we were actually AT WAR...no articles of war have been sworn against any Mid-Eastern country...we are NOT officially at war...

The war on terror is like the war on drugs...it is a war only in action and policy, it is not a real war.
So, think about your life. Next time you get a speeding ticket, and the officer fails to tell you the time and place of your court appearance, you are guilty of "failure to appear" and will have a bench warrant issued for your arrest...you are guilty because law enforcement has failed to do their job.
Or if you do business at some place that is suspected of terrorist ties, then you are suspect as well.
Or maybe if you visit a website that is on the watch list, you will now be investigated for wrong-doing, even though, you didn't do anything.

What is wrong with this country and why aren't we doing anything about it?