article by RVk
Regardless of what his personal views are or what his party stands for, this new NDAA law is a demented decision which falls not too far from the ones that the United States criticized from people like Chávez and other wannabe tyrants, in a world of conspiration and speculations that come quicker than any dreams could come true.
Comparing to history and going down memory lane, we are doing to ourselves what America had always criticized other countries for. This law does not stand either for protecting our free country, nor protecting it as a method of security.
We are acting as a country who is out of control and afraid because they can not handle themselves, and their intelligence is as inept as perhaps the police department in a town near you.
These are the reasons why, in my honest opinion of a regular and simple American Republican woman, who can look from the outside in and is not disturbed by static noise, we can find by looking back into history how we are making a big mistake which can backfire and not only threaten our national security, but the peace and stability in our own country:
- The Bolsheviks marked a totalitarian turn both in their collective disregard of individual rights and due process, and in their abandonment of any pretense of legality.
- President Hugo Chávez lead the charge against private property rights, ratifying legislation that grants the Executive branch absolute power to intervene private entities without due process.
- During Fidel Castro’s reign, human rights advocates were denied the right of due process and subjected to unfair trials, political prisoners were regularly offered the choice of exile or continued imprisonment and prison conditions remained harsh.
- Adolf Hitler, in 1940, signed operational orders including directives authorizing the shooting of commandos or political commissars taken prisoner in uniform and other directives making it possible to detain civilians without due process.
- During North Korean leader Kim Jong-il’s regime, he starved, tortured and imprisoned his people without mercy. Untold thousands died over 17 years of misrule without due process.
- The Russian secret police are notorious for raiding homes between midnight and dawn, to apprehend people suspected of dissent, without due process.
What do we stand for?
So let’s review what we Americans stand for, in regards of this discussion. America stood for a government that was built by the people, for the people. America stood for the opportunity to express yourself without fear of state persecution. According to Thomas Jefferson:
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.”
In honor of our founding fathers who fought, bled, and built this country for us, we should go back to the foundation, which is in our constitution and history, and read it. A few things we should take in consideration while reading is the proper role of our government, the liberty of citizens, the extent of the government in our personal lives and decisions, and the measurements of security. Another quote from Thomas Jefferson:
“I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them.”
U.S. military fights for our freedom and justice and have won the hearts and minds of many people in many places. But by Mr. Obama, *president* of the United States, turning their mission into everything they do not stand for, something nor the military families or the soldier itself will do; to turn on their own brothers and sisters on their own land.
Have they ever considered how this would be managed by cities, by governors and mayors, by small towns, by the press? With the manipulation of any of the above, this could turn into a witch hunt without trials. Different types of witch hunt too; racial, political, by gender, religious… and it goes on.
Wait, the witches did have trials. (Good God…)
They are pushing the patience and tolerance of the American people, where a world which is currently somehow civilized and in peace can turn into a world of anger and resentment against the government, pushing a lot of people underground and we may end up having our country turn into what we are trying to avoid by signing this law. In the long run, we can only hope that fanatics and extremists will not turn this into another excuse to hurt our country. God forbid this law can fall into the hands of a hypocritical government or a tyrant, chosen by the people, who will probably turn against his own party and take full control, turning our country into martial law. What would we do and who would protect us?
Does this sound crazy? Not if we look at history for the last 20 years and pay attention to the newspapers.
Where would be blind justice to listen and prove our innocence from false accusations? The accusations of defection, dissent, treason… what if it is not true and the person is falsely accused?
Mr. President, and honorable ladies and gentlemen from the Senate and Congress of the Unites States of America: is this really what we are turning America into, a detention camp? Have we lost all trust in our judicial system, or simply faith in ourselves and our country? If the last two are our real problem, we should work on that before we look unstable, not only to the world, but to our fellow Americans. We Americans love our beloved country, United States. We are proud. We are brave. Wherever we are, wherever we go. Mr. President Obama, respect the citizens of the United States of America as well as their intelligence level when you cowardly sign behind curtains the most infamous law ever, while the whole world is celebrating an upcoming year.
This is as ironic as when the Achaeans brought in the Trojan Horse, as all the citizens of Troy were distracted, celebrating their victory to Sparta. Incredible. Is this what’ll happen? Destruction of American liberty, in our case? Or simply complete destruction of the due process?
Has the government looked at all scenarios or is it that we, the People, do not count anymore? Who really benefits from this law, and what is Mr. Obama trying to become?
