Papers Please

This is a frightening bit of information.  Ohio is on its way to passing its own Patriot Act in an effort to broaden police authority in order to combat terrorism.  Apparently, the threat of terrorism is so great in Ohio that they need their own set of laws in addition to the national Patriot Act to protect its citizens from Al Qaeda.  How long before we see similar laws crossing the desks of our own Governors?  Although my husband informs me that in Washington State, we already have such a law on the books.  Complacency is a dangerous thing.

Connecting the dots is a crucial part of reading the news these days and let me just put on my tin foil hat before I speculate that the reason Ohio is passing such a law is in preparation for the next election cycle.  Protestors by nature are not all too cooperative with police, and refusing to show ID will make it easy to get them quickly out of the streets.  The Ohio Patriot Act is not the law yet, but all it needs is Governor Taft’s signature so it’s pretty much a done deal.  The American people are increasingly unbothered by infringements on our civil liberties, so why should he care one bit?

The good news is, the ACLU will most likely challenge the law as soon as it is put into effect.  Let’s hope that it is found to be in conflict with their state constitution.  The Religious Right has done a marvelous job of using the courts to challenge local, state and federal laws that they would like to see changed.  We should take a lesson from them and take action in as local a way as possible when we see our freedoms being trampled upon.  I know I am going to look into our law here in Washington, I suggest you do the same in your state.  If you’re lucky, there will be nothing on the books as of yet, but look a little deeper and you may find a movement within the state legislature to restrict your rights.  Let’s challenge them!  They are our rights, and they are worth fighting for tooth and nail.  God’s army is encroaching on our turf and it’s past time for us liberal soldiers to meet them head on.  They may have God on our side, but we have the law on ours.