Now that the fate of individual liberty is secure in the hands of the DoJ, we all can rest assure that only the criminals will get their due. At least, that is what we are told to believe. All that Attorney General Ashcroft has asked, has been granted. The tools have been authorized and their storage case will reside within the hands of law enforcement. Now the eradication of these cells can get under way in earnest.

Well, if it was that simple. When RICO was passed we were told that organized crime was above the reach of the G-men and that the threat of these peddlers in sleaze and drugs, would now be put out of business. How did they do! Was RICO used primarily to target mob families or has it been applied indiscriminately against any communication between two parties, deemed to be a criminal action, by our trusted government? Students of the RICO record are even more alarmed with the passage of the anti-terrorist bill.

The Bill of Rights could never be passed by public referendum, if the vote was taken today. The vast majority consider RICO to be a success. Most will be eager to support the anti-terrorist bill. You don't have to be a member of the ACLU to express concern that somewhere in this rush to sweep away the odor of terrorist hate, that the same winds of purification, will blow the last vestige of protection for individual rights. No one wishes to add more confusion to that which has already overtaken the country. Long after the criminals have been incarcerated or removed, 'We the People', will be living under the consequences of permanent State surveillance. Echelon, having finally been acknowledged after being exposed is finally getting the legal authority to carry on their normal business. So why should we be concerned, when they have been monitoring your emails, your phone calls and faxes for years? I got nothing to hide . . .

Under the cover of War, government always expands. We have been told America has changed forever. But what is being concealed is that measures to usurp the remnants of freedoms, that past generations would defend with their lives, have been sketched out for decades. Only an excuse was necessary to put the plan in motion. Upon a Republican President, so much the better.

If you doubt the validity of the such a scheme, take a broad view of the fundamental changes to America since World War II. No one of sincere scrutiny can dismiss the systematic march down the road to central control of the entire society. Government will be the only growth industry after 911. Those who warn of draconian penalties in store for those who wander off the reservation, are dismissed as kooks. Well, just who are the crazies? The one's who readily report to the department of motor vehicles for their retina registration or the one's who demand that infringements of personal privacy are guaranteed as a birth right?

This bill will bear the cure of a lost civilization. The media scares you into a frenzy so you will accept the unthinkable. Fears from anonymous contamination are planted and continually reinforced at every press conference. The public responds to the stimuli, and clamors for more security, as they surrender more of their rights. The Pavlovian dog has become the pet of the State, and responds to the name; taxpayer.

Harry Browne cautioned, five years back, about the passage of these measures: "Asset forfeiture laws are a license for legal looting by law enforcement". Even if you support roving and emergency wiretaps, weakening of encryption and government mandated taggants within explosives; how could you allow the expansion of RICO style stealing of personal property, without due process?

When the innocent is accused of alleged violations, that must pay the same heavy price to defend themselves as the real criminal. When your bank account and remaining assets are seized before your day in court, you are already on your way to jail, before the jury hears the first probative presentation of evidence. Is this the standard that will make you safe from Terrorists who are willing to die along side their victims?

The immediate danger can be controlled with expelling those on expired visits, strident requirements and limitations on all new visas, dramatic reduction of foreign student admissions, registration of all foreign entry, exit and continuous monitoring of residence, and voiding constitutional protections for all non citizens.

The Anti-Terrorist Bill will have the effect of targeting more Americans than foreign guests. If you doubt this conclusion, just review the record of the RICO statue. Federal Prosecutors have the power of the almighty within their hands. Proponents of the bill hang their hat on the four year sunset provision in the legislation. If you really think that these measures will be retired, you are a 'true believer' in the good intentions of your government.

The road down the path towards slavery is littered with the bodies of the innocent. The terrorists will achieve their ultimate objective if they are able to destroy our system of protecting individual liberty. Your government is acting more like the criminals they claim are the basis for this legislation, when they sell you on rendering your rights moot. Habeas Corpus, what's that? Dead bodies of terrorists many not be the only corpses. Patriot Act, please! Be careful for what you wish, it has just been granted . . .

SARTRE - October 26, 2001