Thursday, December 16, 2010

The vampires' sleight of hand

From Fastline: the Official Blog of the US Secretary of Transportation comes this gem:
Refusal rates in Texas have dropped from nearly 50 percent down to 10 percent. And, when a case does go to trial, conviction rates are higher. As [Montgomery County, Texas] Asst. D.A. [Warren] Diepraam said, "We give 100 percent scientific evidence to our juries."
Ray LaHood is the Secretary of Transportation. Mr. LaHood took an oath to uphold the Constitution. Mr. LaHood is a public employee - we pay his salary.

The Department of Transportation, Mr. LaHood's bailiwick, is funded by the taxpayers.

And your tax money is being used to water down the protections laid out in the Bill of Rights all in the name of making it easier for prosecutors to brand motorists criminals for life.

When Mr. LaHood and his fellow travelers speaks out in favor of No Refusal Weekends they are playing the public for fools. The object is to make motorists accused of driving while intoxicated the enemy - the "them" to our "us."

Letting "them" choose not to blow in the state's breath test machine is an affront to "us." Forcing "them" to choose between blowing and bleeding is a benefit to "us." The vampires and their friends are using the ultimate sleight of hand trick to get the public's support for their end run around the Fourth and Fifth Amendments. Of course, by demonizing motorists accused of drunk driving, the bloodsuckers can distract your attention from the real issue at hand.

For you see, it may very well be "us" versus "them," but not in the way the vampires want you to envisage. We, the people, are "us." The Bill of Rights protects our rights from the avaricious hands of the government we created. Thomas Jefferson and the anti-Federalists insisted upon the Bill of Rights because they foresaw a government that would seek to expand its powers into the daily affairs of man.

And that's just what those pushing No Refusal are doing -- seeking to expand the power of the state. The act of standing up for one's rights is the most revolutionary thing a person can do. The act of refusing to give the state the evidence to convict oneself is a noble deed and serves to protect all of us -- not just the accused.

Allow the state to take away one's right not to incriminate oneself when accused of DWI, and it's just a matter of time before the state comes to take away another of your "inalienable rights."

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