In years. About 30 years ago you could have caught me wandering Central Park in my jeans only, barefoot, zonked out completely. But that was another life.
Well then please understand how, for a very large segment of the population, America's promise of 'freedom' has turned into a tyrannical, ruthless nightmare. Just because it's not happening <b>to you</b>, doesn't mean it's not happening. As a clean living white guy with graying temples, <b>of course</b> the system is set in place to make sure that you personally would be <b>among the last</b> to feel the complete abandonment of the 4th Amendment that is going on all around you! But it is bound to hit someone in your family eventually, and then you will understand. What is this 'it' I'm referring to? I'm talking about cops illegally searching someone you care about, and then lying about it. I'm talking about getting bullied and lied to your face by thugs with guns and badges, and having zero recourse to do anything about it... yet somehow <i><b>you</b></i> become the defendant, while the thugs who committed the real crime are sent out to do it all over again. This has already recently happened to <b>so many people</b> I know (plus me personally too), that sooner or later you're bound to find out what I'm talking about.
No, it's not "what you said". There's a big difference between tyranny and control. By saying that the people are who should be in charge, you're only agreeing with me. The rest of your histrionics I'll ignore--sounds to me like someone told you to do something you didn't want to--boo hoo.
As I'm pretty sure this is a result of the drug war, I do have a pretty good idea what goes on, although thankfully no one I know has been affected by it, yet. I'm for the legalization of all drugs, period. As far as I'm concerned, this whole drug war thing is a stupid mistake that has to end. As for me, I keep as far away from law enforcement as I can. I have no illusions not only about what they can do, but about which side my fellow citizens will take in any his word vs mine confrontation in a court of law. But there's no defense against the fact that citizens will take the word of a cop over that of a defendant. As far as I know, it's an unavoidable risk of a jury system. The fact they're allowed to confiscate everything an accused person in a drug case owns is a travesty, and a trampling of the Constitution. That's something that needs to be struck down as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. For some reason I'm not too in tune with, Americans walk around in fear all the time. This country overall is by far one of the safest places to live there is; my house has no alarms, we almost never lock any of the doors, and pretty much the only thing between us and a burglar is one very tame 40 pound mutt who's more likely to lick a burglar to death than anything else. But very large portions of the population live in deathly fear of some weird bogeyman coming along and taking all they have. That fear is what makes things like the Patriot Act and the crap done under the guise of the drug war possible. I don't know how you exorcise that out of this country. I think part of it comes from too many nights watching pro-fascist shows like Cops and Twenty Four.
Kills me when somebody declares the people this and the people that when its so obvious that the question is WHICH people.
Seems pretty clear who the "witch" people you are talking about are... <img src=http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a101/kskphoto/fascism-sarah-palin-flag-fascist-cross-republican-demotivational-poster-1224893113.jpg>
Your assertion is absolutely wrong , and almost laughable. If you want freedom, You Vote The Likes of Obama The Hell Out..... anyone who does not see a distinction between "left" and "right" is just blind
idiot ... is it just me, or is it Oprah's and Queer Eye for the straight guys audience that seems to put the most wind in Palin's sails. (ie; faggots and dikes)