Illegal Laws

I've always found the conversation about activist judges interesting. The right is fond of saying they want judges who interpret the law, not create it. This is nothing but a tricky way of saying they want to install activist judges who agree with them. Frankly, more power to 'em. They're in power, the people have spoken and the people need to live with the consequences. I have no problem with the exercise of power granted by the people but as John Lennon once said, "Just gimme some truth." I mean, God forbid someone call something what it really is! If you point blank told the American people what you mean, I suppose, they might not like the idea. If you said the plan was to install judges who would cut back on civil liberties, civil rights, privacy and personal freedoms, the majority might toss you out on your ass. So, instead, we get the typical political doubletalk.

But that isn't what this blog entry is about...

I wanted to let everyone know that there are lots of illegal (unconstitutional) laws in America. In fact, there are probably millions of them! The point is that a law is the law of a certain locality until it's challenged. That happens very infrequently, in the scheme of things, because of the costs associated with the process. It is up to the federal government to establish an acceptable baseline. There are those in the modern Republican party who feel that the baseline should be set back to where it was in 1950. I disagree and think most Americans feel the same way. And I'm not just talking about Roe V. Wade here. I'm talking about the entire civil rights movement, the right to privacy and the right to a fair hearing with the assistance of a lawyer. These are basic rights that have come about over these last 50 years. These advances are due, in part, to activist judges! I don't believe for one minute that the American people would stand for massive changes to these rights; however, I have no doubt that this is precisely where the far right means to take us.

So, the next time Chimpy the President smirks and starts talking about the kind of judges he wants to appoint, I ask you to remember this blog entry and decide for yourself. Is he really interested in Constitutional Law or is he really trying to tip the scales of justice to where he believes they ought to be?