Misc. Ramblings

Some people, full of hate and anger, seem to only see what they want to see. [insert disclaimer here]

As the US slowly moves toward ultra-conservatism, and the totalitarian state that would logically result, some are trying to get people to see the danger. Some are trying to get us to pull back from the abyss that lies inches from our feet.

I don't know Arthur Silber. As far as I can remember I've never visited his site nor read anything he has written. But he has a short post entitled "Towards a Stalinist Theocracy, Advocating Murder, and Hell Draws Closer." It documents the thoughts of certain people on the right who seem to be calling for changes to the courts that would destroy our system of Constitutional checks and balances and the republic it protects.

These checks and balances were put in place by the forefathers to make government inefficient. They were willing to make this tradeoff, it can be argued, because they lived under totalitarian rule and knew the feeling of government's boot pressing down on their throats. So, they were willing to trade a little efficiency for a lot of freedom.

What is so strange to me is that the US Congress already holds the final trump over the Executive and Judicial branches because it is only Congress (and state constitutional conventions) that can create, amend, or destroy the Constitution. It is only Congress that creates the very laws Congress now seems to want the Judiciary to ignore.

Talk about wanting activist judges! These conservatives seem to want sycophants who will do their bidding, regardless of the rule of law. Forget about separate, but equal. They want servants who will do their dirty, political work. Heck, forget about interpreting the law, many of these people don't even want the Judiciary to hear many types of cases. In the end, the Congress seems intent on breaking down the separation of powers so that it alone is the final arbiter of the law.

It is not without reason that federal judges are appointed for life. While, in the past, I have wondered whether that was a Good Thing, I now see the wisdom of the forefathers. They saw the passions that swayed the minds of men. They saw the irrational fears, anger, and yes, hate that filled men's souls. Emotions so strong that ideas so contrary to freedom and democracy could not only take hold, but spread like a wild fire across the parched prairie. A fire that consumes like the fires of Hell.

We make our own destinies. Nothing is set in stone. You can choose freedom or you can choose Hell. Choose wisely.

Aloha!