IMAGINARY FREEDOMS
Defend and die for your civil liberties abroad; just don�t expect to enjoy them at home
BY MIKE ZIGLER
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Mike Zigler is editor of Liberty Watch: The Magazine. After serving as news editor at Las Vegas CityLife and editor-in-chief at the UNLV Rebel Yell, he currently directs internal communications on the Las Vegas Strip. Feel free to reach him at [email protected]
Other stories by Mike Zigler
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The powerful tell us to treasure them, defend them, yet give them up when national security calls. From our first social studies class to our final history exam, we are reminded that this country was built by men who valued them above all else, even life. Dear readers, I�m talking about civil liberties � those imaginary red-white-and-blue freedoms that completely protect the individual from government. We�re told our troops die for liberties abroad so we can enjoy them at home, but I can�t convince myself we have them at all. News reports from the past six months serve as evidence.
In San Francisco�s Corona Heights neighborhood, elected city officials destroyed a homeless encampment by funding a herd of goats to chew up brush and other vegetation. Residents think the approach should be applied to other parks and homeless hangouts in the area. The homeless, apparently, have no rights.
Peace officers in Pasadena jerked a quadriplegic man out of his wheelchair and hung him upside down to search him. A jury, though, didn�t think the officers were at fault. Rather, they believed the city failed to train its men in blue how to properly deal with a quadriplegic. So the politically correct jurors overlooked an aggressive search and seizure and ruled that the city, er, taxpayer, must pay $80,000 to the quadriplegic man. The officers kept their jobs.
In Morrisville, N.C., a police officer handed Kent Kauffman a ticket for not wearing his seat belt. When Kauffman coughed in the cop�s direction, the officer, Chris Gill, charged him with assault on a government official. Gill cuffed Kauffman, threw him into the side of a patrol car, and charged him with a class misdemeanor. If convicted, Kauffman could spend up to 60 days in jail.
Alex Jones was jailed for organizing Americans who question 9/11. He and his colleagues didn�t have a permit to protest on a New York City street, where Fox News� Geraldo was broadcasting his weekend program. The demonstrators� message was too loud and visible, as it drowned out Geraldo. If Jones only obtained a permit, things would�ve been fine. After all, no viewer would�ve heard or seen the demonstration as Fox would�ve refrained from an on-location broadcast.
In Tennessee, state Department of Revenue agents now stop motorists spotted buying large quantities of cigarettes in border states, then charge them with a crime and, in some cases, seize their cars. The agency says it�s simply enforcing a valid state law while �protecting� Tennessee retailers who properly pay state taxes.
Future leaders are not immune from civil-liberty ignorance either. Take Mitt Romney. Speaking on wiretapping churches and mosques, he recently shared, �I hear from time to time people say, �Wait a second; we have civil liberties we have to worry about.� But don�t forget, the most important civil liberty I expect from my government is my right to be kept alive.�
That�s a freedom, eh? Could�ve sworn civil liberties didn�t involve government interference. Could�ve sworn my country expects me to die for civil liberties.
Sadly, this is the state of our nation. You don�t hear too much about violations of civil liberties in political speeches, presidential promises or six o�clock newscasts. You do hear that you should sacrifice them, though.
Civil liberties are a nice American term, not a true American practice. Abroad, we are imperialists with reckless abandon for the liberties of humankind. At home, no matter our American role � elected official, juror, peace officer, protester, consumer, etc. � we are a confused group with little idea of how to exercise and stand up for the sacred civil liberty.
Ever seen the show �Cops�? Ever question the legality of certain arrests, searches and seizures in the program? Likely not. For 20 seasons, this show has been in living rooms, displaying the grossest police abuse on civil liberties. And no one cares. Rather, we�ve offered it enough ratings for its creators and network to profit for two decades. Civil-liberty abuse has become American entertainment. Perhaps a half-hour program with the proper angle, such as prosecuting government officials for trampling the Constitution, might generate public action. Just don�t expect a show that demonizes these �leaders� and �peace officers� (who supposedly �protect� us) anytime soon. WIth the mindset Americans have today � as demonstrated by juries, lawmakers, etc. � no one can be accountable for violating imaginary freedoms.
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