The Constitution's in the <i>Star Wars</i> Trash Compactor

Sure, it's a bit premature to compare our situation to an Orwellian future, but this is how it starts. And, short of a droid shutting down the Death Star, how can we stop these politicians from squeezing out even more of our freedom and privacy in the name of God or National Security?
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Can you feel it? The walls around our freedoms are closing in. Little by little. Bit by bit. Day by 105 degree day. Both nationwide and statewide. The things we take for granted because they're protected by that flimsy, barely legible document, the Constitution, are disappearing right before our eyes.

It seems every day we wake up to yet another tiny piece of sacred fabric being torn away, and some law maker somewhere double-speaking as to why it's necessary. Meanwhile, we, as a nation, focus on important stuff; like what Kate and William will name their baby.

  • Whether you're talking about abortion, and states like North Dakota and Texas, seeking to eviscerate the few remaining options a woman has to choose.

  • Whether you're talking about right-to-privacy issues and how far our government can go in a post 9/11 world before it becomes a police state (some say we're already there).
  • Or, whether you're talking about the bill Congress just passed which allows protests near areas of "National Significance" to be stamped out, make no mistake; it's happening. And we're letting it happen.
  • We tell ourselves, "It's only happening in Texas," or, "It's only a tiny bit of freedom in exchange for security," because we don't want to believe it's happening.

    It's really a sad time to be an American. The only thing our representatives have unanimously agreed on in the past decade is a bill that protects them from public scrutiny if they pass another bill that elicits an outcry. Meanwhile, we're left to try and decipher a health care bill that's harder to read than a New York City parking sign, automatic weapons are everywhere, and there's arsenic in our food supply. Great job, guys.

    We're "all-in" when it comes to protesting the Zimmerman verdict, but it's probably safe to assume not a single person will gather on the steps of their town hall to protest H.R.347; the bill that "slightly" altered the definition of willingly and knowingly. Just slightly, folks. Nothing to worry about here.

    Yet, who can blame them? It's quite possible the next time we decide to "Occupy" someplace, some mayor or judge somewhere might have you thrown in jail for a year because you threw a hot dog at the governor's SUV, and he may have the power of a brand-new Constitution behind him.

    A word here. A warrant-less search there. No more protests for fear of reprisals. Then, generations later, when it's way beyond too late, we're reduced to gathering in the Town Square in Guy Fawkes masks. Sure, it's a bit premature to compare our situation to an Orwellian future, but this is how it starts. And, short of a droid shutting down the Death Star, how can we stop these politicians from squeezing out even more of our freedom and privacy in the name of God or National Security?

    We are the inventors of social media. As we've seen demonstrated from other parts of the world, it seems to be a pretty powerful weapon. Yet, what do we use it for? To tweet about how big The Rock is getting for his upcoming role in Hercules.

    Forget Arab Spring, how about an American one?

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