Category Archives: Rights and Liberties

THE ABSOLUTE UNABSOLUTENESS OF RELIGIOUS FREEDOM

Posted on March 2, 2012 by

Republicans have, once again, framed an issue to suit their own misguided – and downright false – interpretation of our Constitution.  The original body of our U.S. Constitution contains scant mention of religion.  One prohibition is the requirement of a … Continue reading →

Posted in Bill of Rights, Religion, Reproductive Rights, Republican Party, Republicans, Rights and Liberties, Women's Interests | Tagged , , | 8 Comments

SELMA, LORD, SELMA

Posted on February 16, 2011 by

I recently drove to Florida and took a detour to Alabama to see three civil rights memorials which had been on my mind for quite some time: 1) the Birmingham, Alabama,  location of the jail where Martin Luther King, Jr. … Continue reading →

Posted in Civil Liberties, Civil Rights, History, Human Rights, Rights and Liberties, Statues and Monuments, The Sixties | Tagged , , , , , | 11 Comments

FORT WAYNE AIRPORT INCREASES INVASION OF PRIVACY

Posted on October 9, 2010 by

I recently took a short trip to Florida  and ran smack dab into the body scanner issue at our little, ole airport.  Now,  I am not sure what basis is used to establish the need for these things, but Fort … Continue reading →

Posted in Civil Liberties, Civil Rights, Rights and Liberties | Tagged , | 11 Comments

NEW BMV RULES – SHADES OF BEN FRANKLIN’S FEARS

Posted on July 19, 2009 by

Eight years after 9/11, the public is still surrendering to fear and willing to sacrifice “essential liberty” for a little bit of security.  Promulgated under the guise of protecting unsuspecting Hoosiers from identity theft, new Indiana BMV rules, which demand … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics, Rights and Liberties, Government, Congress | Tagged , , , , | 29 Comments

PRIVACY RIGHTS FALL TO DESPERATE ANTI-CHOICE ULTRASOUND TACTIC

Posted on February 6, 2009 by

When it comes to getting the government out of our lives, the anti-choice crowd exercises a double standard.  Senate Bill 417 introduced by Senator Jean Leising of Indianapolis mandates a woman considering an abortion shall obtain an ultrasound at least … Continue reading →

Posted in Indiana, Republican Party, Republicans, Rights and Liberties, Women's Interests | Tagged , , | 21 Comments

ANTI-CHOICERS PUSHING HOSPITAL ADMITTING PRIVILEGES AT STATE LEVEL

Posted on February 4, 2009 by

The Indiana Senate and House are again poised for a tussle over an anti-choice bill that would require doctors who perform abortions to have admitting privileges at a local hospital in the county in which the abortion is performed.  SB89 … Continue reading →

Posted in Health Care, Indiana, Rights and Liberties, Women's Interests | Tagged , , , | 8 Comments

SUPREME COURT SAYS JUDGES CAN USE DISCRETION – FEDERAL SENTENCING GUIDELINES ARE ADVISORY NOT MANDATORY

Posted on December 14, 2007 by

The United States Supreme Court on Monday decided that judges may use discretion in imposing sentences in federal drug cases.  In Kimbrough v. United States, ___ U.S. ___ (2007), the Supreme Court fell in step with the U.S. Sentencing Commission which earlier this year … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime, Federal Courts, Rights and Liberties, Supreme Court

THE EYES HAVE IT – BEWARE OF BIOMETRICS

Posted on November 24, 2007 by

Mark Souder has become a crusader for biometrics identification (ID) cards; however, he admits the political climate is not yet ripe. That statement alone indicates he must think sometime in the future it will be ripe. Biometrics is, generally, the … Continue reading →

Posted in Bill of Rights, Government, Human Rights, Politics, Rights and Liberties, U.S. Constitution, White House | 7 Comments

WHERE THERE’S SMOKE – MAYBE THERE’S A GUN

Posted on November 23, 2007 by

Probably of little surprise to court watchers everywhere, the United States Supreme Court recently announced it would hear arguments on the always-heated issue of the Second Amendment, its meaning, and its application. The Supreme Court has granted a Writ of … Continue reading →

Posted in Bill of Rights, Rights and Liberties, Second Amendment, Supreme Court, U.S. Constitution | 1 Comment

FDR, THE FEAR OF POLIO, AND THOUGHTS OF HISTORY

Posted on October 13, 2007 by

I visited the Franklin D. Roosevelt memorial when I was in Washington, DC a couple of weeks ago. The memorial is long and spread out with insets containing the statues and exhibits of the memorial. The first “cubby-hole” of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Democrats, Economics, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Monuments, Rights and Liberties, Statues and Monuments, U.S. Constitution, War | 8 Comments