Our country was founded by some very smart people, one of whom said "They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety." (B. Franklin). If we truly believe in our founding fathers, why do we choose to ignore the freedoms that are the foundation of this country, with the theory that we will be safer? The changes since 9/11 do nothing to improve this country, and only serve to prove we are not following our own rules and history. Ashwin - MA
Don't Be Selfish With My Dick College Rules
By giving up freedom and liberty in the name of Homeland Security we allow the terrorists who attacked us to win. They not only murdered nearly four thousand of our citizens, but the filled our leaders with such fear as to take away the very liberties that make our nation unique. We are better than this. We don't need to encroach upon freedoms in order to end attacks. Cheryl - OH
Our freedoms to assemble and speak against our elected officials have been subverted by politicians who don't believe in said rights because what we are saying does not agree with their ideology. THIS SHOULD BE UNACCEPTABLE TO US. OUR FOUNDING FATHERS ARE ROLLING OVER IN THEIR GRAVES. Christopher
It's time to recommit to protecting our country against the creeping Fascism that has taken hold. When people can be arrested for merely asking questions at a congressional town hall, or for wearing a t-shirt that the Repugnicans don't like, or confined in "free speech" pens during political conventions, or spied upon by the government without a warrant, what has happened to our freedom? David - MA
Clamping down on freedoms does not keep us safe. As a matter of fact, it keeps us decidedly unsafe. Sexual battery at airports, or don't fly, is safety ? Sounds more like virtual gunpointing, to me. Warrantless wiretapping without probable cause, extraordinary rendition and indefinite detention, warrantless arrests based on unilateral whims...is safety? Sounds like former Iron Curtain or Red CHina to me. Sounds like crimes. On our dime. This has nothing to do with safety, and has everything to do with power and control, all cloaked in the guise of safety. Must we pay for such abuses? THat is ludicrous! The system of checks and balances must be restored, as must our civil liberties. ANd power belongs with the judiciary as a fundamental arm of government, and part of the system of checks and balances. The oath of office to uphold, protect and defend the US Constitution must be upheld, or we will vote you out of office and expose your voting records online and in letters to the editor. Drina - CA
Too many people have died protecting our freedom to allow our constitution to be subverted by selfish interest groups and secret agencies. Americans need to awaken to the real dangers we face from within. Janet - CT
Every day we see items in the news that inspire gut reactions of outrage. The trouble is that we too often do not take the time to think about news and by thinking I mean critical thinking. A good example was when President Obama publicly spoke out upon hearing of the arrest of Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates for disorderly conduct. But at least he recognized his blunder and made amends. Can that be said of many in the news commentary business that fight over being the first to give their gut reactions to things that they know very little about, like the recent killing spree in Norway. When the news first broke there was immediate blame placed on Al Qaeda, Muslim extremists, and jihadis in general. How wrong they were. The same thing happened in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing--it must have been Muslims. Wrong again. I am constantly getting emails that have gone through many generations of forwarding, all expressing outrage over one thing or another, but what they all have in common is a lack of examination of the facts. It rarely takes me long to verify the lack of veracity or the twisting of facts from these largely anonymous articles. But these emails just keep going around long after the lies have been exposed. What is wrong with America is just what Adolph Hitler recognized as his power base when he said "How fortunate for governments that the people they administer don't think." Far too many of us fail to think critically about what happens around us each day. Because of that we, or the people we elect to represent us, give support to laws that pass to "get tough on crime" only to discover the unintended consequences that come back to bite them. 9/11 scared us, but was our collective gut reaction appropriate? Are we happy with the subsequent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq? Are we happy with the way the Patriot Act has curtailed many of our freedoms? Were our leaders using critical thinking skills when they took these measures to "Protect our National interests?" Or were they just counting on the people not thinking so that they could pursue some hidden agenda? Of course, I am not suggesting that our leaders have nothing but the highest respect for the people who elected them. Now, what do you think? And take your time thinking, don't just react. Mark - MT
The purpose of 9-11 was to cripple our economy. So, what do we do? We make it a 2HR logjam to take a plane! We have lost only as long as we alter our system to try to cope with terrorists. Smart bombs? Fine. But don't make violating our constitution "acceptable!" Then they won already! Michael - CA
I've been a member of the ACLU since FDR and HST... I am USAF veteran of WWII, Korean War, retired reservist...sworn "...to protect the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic..." I am implacably opposed to the oligarchs, the neofeudalists who want to return the country to the dark ages, to the ancient evil lords and serfs society... The ACLU is one of the strongest forces in the land for Lincoln's vision... Theme A New Birth of Freedom People forget what an incredible revolution was the Enlightenment and the founding of our country. This was a truly fundamental change; the whole shape of human history was altered as by nothing before or since, not by wars, by art, by science, by religion. Until then people universally were governed by despots who oppressed them ruthlessly, supported by priests who told the people that the rulers were divinely empowered, that failures of fealty would expose them not only to the most brutal punishment but also to afterlives of endless torment. Most everyone thought it had always been that way and always would be. The founders drew from philosophers and historians of the Enlightenment this central, truly revolutionary idea: the only way people could live free of tyrannical governance was to govern themselves. And for the founders this was not just tavern talk. They declared independence, took up arms and went to war against the ancient tyranny, the superpower of the age. And at the cost of terrible privation and suffering, at home and in battle, they won the chance to bring our country into being as home of a free people. And they established the Constitution so we could work together for the common good with protection for each. For tyrants this was a defeat; but from the beginning they have worked to subvert our self-governance. Of late this effort has grown in strength and scope. They are attacking the Constitution; they intend no less than to reshape our country on the old tyrannical model of top-down rule over a subservient population. But understanding of this threat is growing. The very damage they have done has cleared people's minds to see what Lincoln saw in another time of enormous pain and destruction: it's time for "a new birth of freedom -- so that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth." And I don't care much for "SAFE" I care for the Constitution Samuel - WA
You say things without prof of what you say. With tRump we have a track record that is miles long. He told us what he was and showed us that when he opened his lying mouth.Religion is dead it died on the cross many years ago. The only thing tRump did was use religion to become president not by popular vote but the cheating way the electoral lying college.
George, let me hit you with an akshully. Benedict Arnold was a swell enough dude who was totally screwed over by the American government and military. The government owed Arnold rightful wages and when he asked for them, he was written off as greedy and selfish. Similar for Aaron Burr. These gents received villain upgrades over time due to their stories being told by their enemies.
Everything you have posted is exactly how I feel about my 15 year old with ODD. I'm so sorry you are going through this. I'm fortunate to have my husband of 20+ years for support, so I honestly don't know how you do it. We adopted our 15 year old from foster care when he was 7-1/2 and I really wish I knew then what I know now. When you say your household is miserable, I feel the same way! It seems that no matter what we do or don't do, it doesn't work for long if at all. He can be so ugly with his words and actions and it's WAY too often! He has been in and out of our home for the past 3 years and when he is gone, it is so peaceful and relaxed. He's in our home and everything revolves around him. You can't take a breath. We too cannot wait until he's 18 and we can legally have him out of our home. It's sad to say that about your own child, but it's so stressful living like this!!!
A brief history of my circumstances I have a husband with ADHD, my eldest a daughter who has ODD, my middle son has ADHD and my youngest son, other than some anxiety issues (totally understandable considering his living conditions) is your typical average kid. Me, I have been wrangling this circus for over 15 years. I'm tired, I'm frustrated, I'm confused, I'm angry, I'm fatigued. That being said, I'm also a fighter and I don't quit easily, who hoo for me.
I have a 16 year old daughter who over the past 2 1/2 years has ran away from us 8 times. This last stretch of 7 months have been great. She has followed the rules and gone to class as expected. We finally thought we were past the hump of all the chaos that made no since. Then on New Year's Eve she tried to run away and was caught at the airport this time. She continues to put herself in danger by talking with and meeting complete strangers from the Internet. We have had her on pretty strict restrictions and had been giving her some trust that we believed that she earned. Now with the recent runaway attempt I don't know what to do to stop this behavior. I feel help captive. Everything was going fine and then BAM! right back to where I can't sleep at night and my 16 year old needs a babysitter if I need to run to an appointment. I had her looked at be several specialist whom all told me she has no mental defect or disorder. The only thing we have been told is abs has ODD which there is no cure and no real guideance. If anyone has any suggestions I am all ears. I feel like I am failing her and don't know what else I can do to help her see how dangerous her behavior is. 2ff7e9595c
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