No, I Will Not Comply. Period.

This is a very interesting excerpt from Michael Badnarik's constitution class. Will you comply?

Impeach Those Who Won't

You congresspeople out there whom don't understand their jobs, this post is for you. For all those in the legislative branch who've never read the Constitution and do not understand their purpose in the system of checks and balances, this is for you.

Read Article Two, Section 4 of the Constitution please. It gives the House of Representatives the authority of oversight on the executive branch by enabling them to impeach officials that commit crimes while in office. Even in a delusional state of mind that could somehow ignore the crimes perpetrated by the current administration, it is your job to uphold the law on any future crimes committed by them. If you are a congressperson whom has stated that impeachment is "off the table", then you are failing to do your job.

Let's say Bush ordered the army to start shooting US citizens out of the blue, are you then saying that would not be something to impeach him on. I mean, impeachment is off the table, obviously there's no reason to do your job, so why start doing it any time in the future.

You all swore an oath to uphold the Constitution. All of you that disregard any portion of it are failing that oath and a disgrace to your office. Please withdraw such statements or resign your office in shame of such contemptible failure.

The rest of us have to do our jobs, so congress please do your's.

Judge Upholds the Constitution, Boy Dies

The other day, it was reported that a 14-year-old boy had died after refusing to receive blood transfusions for his leukemia. This spark quite a discussion all over the Internet about the decisions both the government and the boy made. Luckily, in the end, freedom won. Sadly, a boy died.

Dennis Lindberg was a Jehovah Witness and did not want a transfusion that would make his blood "unclean". The state tried to have the court force Mr. Lindberg to have the treatments, but Judge John Meyers would none of it. He did not see that the boy was trying to commit suicide and that he was just practicing his religious beliefs.

As I read through discussions on the Internet, I was somewhat surprised that so many people didn't think a 14-year-old should be able to make such a decision. Unfortunately, there's a little thing called the First Amendment that allows the freedom of religion. Usually, it has been upheld that most things can be done in accordance with religious practices as long as they do not harm others. The last thing I want is the government getting into the affairs of my family, unless it somehow we are somehow affecting those outside of our family.

That's not to say I agree with the kid's decision. It's just that, well... it really is none of my business. Dennis' Aunt was his legal guardian and approved of his decision. If she had not, this would be an entirely different case in which legal precedent is sketchy, but most likely he would have received the treatments. Furthermore, the parents did not agree with his decision, but decided not to appeal the case, which I think says something in itself. In America, we should have every right to decide what goes in our bodies, and that includes things that may be good for us.

I feel sorry for the family and Mr. Lindberg, but thankfully they were able to decide how to live and/or end their lives without governmental interference. Just imagine if we had another Terri Schiavo event. The government has no place in determining the morality of personal decisions that harm no one else and I hope it stays that way

Revolutions Ain't Easy

America is in a decline. It has been for quite some time. The last seven years standout as the worse that I've ever seen on American soil. As the constitution is steamrolled and America's integrity erodes ever faster, there is a threshold that changes a free society into an enslaved one. Have we reached it yet? Did we reach it long ago? In either case, how do we make it right?

Thomas Jefferson once stated that, "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants." Talking of open revolt against one's government is not a simple task today, let alone 230 years ago. But where is the tipping point in our society in which citizens take arms up against the tyranny that is forming around us?

Like most things in life that are worth it, a revolution is not easy. It takes serious commitment. You cannot stand in the streets ready to fight the government and go home the next day and watch your favorite football team. You have to be willing to give up everything that you hold dear. That's not easy. The question I put forth is how far will you be pushed until you stand your ground and risk everything for what you believe in?

Most of us have jobs and families. We don't feel oppressed by the government, at least not to the point of fighting back. Yet, everyday we hear about more and more illegal federal programs, illegal wars, and Americans dying in foreign lands for little or no reason. Our economy is failing, our infrastructure is crumbling, and we have the worst health care in the Western world.

Last November, many of us voted the Democrats into power in the legislature to stop the executive from ruining our country further. In today's world, it seems the Democrats and Republicans are one in the same, save for a few souls. Few people in our government stand up for what is right.

Perhaps, that is why so many are putting their faith in Ron Paul. But what if he doesn't win? What if Guiliani, or Hillary wins? Will you take up arms when they continue spying on and torturing people? Will you take up arms when the police do warrantless searches through your homes? What will be your tipping point?

The government is out of control now. They're spending over 60% of your tax money on funding their illegal wars, and that's barely enough to pay the interest on our ever increasing debt. Ron Paul may be able to stop the bleeding if he is elected. But who's to say the Supreme Court won't elect our president again.

Are we going to wait until they mark us with flair and load us onto trains? You may think that I'm exaggerating, but I don't think we're far from that stage. The Constitution and the law has not stopped the government yet, and none of the branches of our government are willing to check each other. They aren't listening to the people and even when new people are elected in, they seem to become as tainted as their predecessors.

So where is the tipping point? When bombs fall on Iran? Where do we draw the line? When do we say, 'I will not comply'? We may laugh when a college student says "Don't tase me bro!", but should we laugh at the 270+ that have died from police taser use in the US? Will we laugh when Americans disappear because of their dissent? Will we laugh when the government watches our every move? Or will we do something?

I know all these questions are hard to answer. I myself am no less part of the problem. Writing this entry in this blog does very little to change the reality of what is happening in this country. The reality is revolutions ain't easy, but tyranny is even harder.

Separating Church and State Keeps Us Free

What many on the religious right do not understand is the importance of separating our church from our state. Throughout our history as a nation there have been people who try to push their personal beliefs into government dealings. What many of them don't understand is that in a free nation that allows them to practice their religion, it also allows others to practice what they want as well. I know it probably seems obvious, but our theocratic president challenges that notion.

The idea that our nation was founded as a Christian one is a myth, at best. Many of the founding fathers were deists or agnostic/atheists. Deism differs from theism on the point that God does not interfere in the lives of humans and does not dictate the workings of the universe. America is not a Christian nation, it is a free nation.

According to the CIA, America is about 80% Christian. Lets say there's a downward trend in religious beliefs over the next 50 years and that 80% halves to 40%, while atheism grows to 45%. In this scenario, atheists are now the leading "religion" in America. What if they tried and succeeded to enact that there shall be no acts of religion in America. They could claim that America was founded as an atheist nation (there's more of a case for that than this being a Christian nation) and that therefore God has no place within our borders. This may seem preposterous, but there's a reason why we have separation of church and state.

No one knows what the future of religious beliefs will be, but I'd rather live in a nation that kept religion entirely out of the government, rather than be force to believe what other believe. Religious freedom was so important that it was put right there in the first amendment to the Constitution. If you stifle one freedom, you begin down a slippery slope of endangering all freedoms. Therefore, I'd like to keep church and state separated, wouldn't you?

Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee Defends the Constitution

Here's something you probably won't see on your news programs, someone actually defending the Constitution of the United States.

During the debate on the new wiretapping legislation:

"... What we're doing here tonight; we are shredding the Constitution, we are tearing up the Bill of Rights, because we are telling Americans that no matter what your business is, you are subject to the unscrupulous, undisciplined, irresponsible scrutiny of the attorney general and others without a court intervention. This is not the day to play politics. It is to balance civil liberties along with the homeland security and the protection of America ... Shame on the other body for failing to recognize that we can secure America by securing the American people and giving them their civil liberties."

Too bad 227 congresspeople ignored civil liberties and the rights of Americans and voted for the new wiretapping legislation.