IT'S THE CONSTITUTION, STUPID!

Despite all the rhetoric and mobilization of the police and military, the
only real act of successfully opposing terrorists was when civilians took
matters into their own hands and foiled the fourth hijacked plane on Sept.
11. While our government has failed miserably to protect anyone, this
foiling of a fourth attack, apparently targeted against the White House,
shows that our fellow citizens are still our best defense.

Homeland security and wars against terrorism are not enough. Even a return
to a prosperous economy is not enough. Americans demand and deserve
something far more important: Protect and defend America's Bill of Rights.

Our highest priority is, has always been and should always continue to be
defending the inalienable rights guaranteed by our Constitution. Every
elected official and military officer is sworn to "protect and defend the
Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic," not the president
or Congress.

Brave American men and woman gave their lives to defend and uphold our
Constitution. That's why all Americans must oppose any action that
undermines those freedoms or betrays these brave patriots and the rights
they fought to uphold. These courageous Americans understood that
inalienable rights cannot be separated from us by any law, regulation,
presidential order or supreme court. We need to respect and uphold our
inalienable rights as indivisible and absolute.

Anything in any bill before any legislature that would infringe on our
rights should be seen as a an unpatriotic action that helps terrorists by
undermining our heritage as a freedom-loving country. Those who tell us that
we must give up our freedom to fight terrorism betray our American ideals
and the real patriots who fought to make America a beacon for freedom and
justice.

Now, all of that is about to change. As reported in the San Francisco
Chronicle, President Bush wants to use a secret federal Court to override
very constitutional protections that make our country so great. This federal
court has been in secret operation for 20 years and has approved 10,000
searches and surveillance and rejected only one request. If Bush gets his
wish, due process will be suspended as these cases are expanded to include
criminal cases against American citizens and no one will be allowed to even
see the evidence used against them. In California, the Bush administration
is already escalating its war of terror against medical marijuana patients,
using similar secret courts, sealed warrants and even raiding attorney's and
doctor's offices, in direct violation of the U.S. Constitution.

Where does our duty lie when both America and our Constitution are under
attack on two very different fronts? Certainly not to our inept political
leaders, who got us all into this mess with their constant meddling in the
affairs of other countries. No, our duty clearly lies with those patriots
who have given their lives for our American freedom and democracy. It is to
those courageous and truly patriotic Americans that we must be true -- by
upholding our precious Constitution and Bill of Rights, against all enemies,
foreign and domestic.

It is time for America to act with its brains, not its brawn and uphold the
very principles that have made America the greatest nation in the world.
America must continue to earn the respect of other countries for its
commitment to freedom and human rights, not because of it military or
economic strength. Whatever course our great country may take, let us
resolve that it will be our glorious Constitution and Bill of Rights -- not
fear or false promises of security -- that illuminates our path.