Getting It Right- Your Constitutional Rights Are Under Attack

7/3/08
This column presents a non-partisan, conservative viewpoint about items of interest in our community and our lives. Focus is on items impacting your pocket book, your personal freedoms, and your rights. I hope you will read the column regularly and it occasionally influences your opinions and actions. Now, on to the subject of the week:
So you think that our constitution provides protection to you for your basic liberties and rights. If you believe that, then I have some ocean front property in Kentucky I would like to sell you.
It is true that the intent of our founding fathers when they pinned the constitution and Bill of Rights was to insure that these basic liberties and rights were documented firmly as the basis of our laws. If those founding authors could only read some of the politically motivated
interpretations and distortions of those original documents that have since been generated by our illustrious Supreme Court Justices during the 232 years that have transpired….they would be mortified and astonished.
An outstanding example of the impact of special interests and political pressures of the day on the interpretation of these basic building stones of our Democracy is the unbelievable growth in size and powers of our Federal Government in comparison to that of our State Governments. In 1776 as our new Democracy was being shaped, there was tremendous fear of the dangers that might come from creation of a powerful central government.
Before the creation of our Federal Government, the new lands of America were comprised of self governing colonies, led by Governors appointed by the rulers in England. After the Revolutionary War was won, the leaders of the colonies were very cautious about yielding any jurisdiction over their lives to a central federal government. Preservation of "States Rights" was the primary concern of the time for the Republicans of that day. Led by Thomas Jefferson, they felt the only role of the Federal government should be jurisdiction over tariffs, international trade, and protection of national territorial rights.
Their opposing group, which was led by John Adams, was called Federalist, and supported a stronger central government with less rights left to the States. Thomas Jefferson’s lifelong friend but political opponent, John Adams was in favor of a stronger central government.
So the Constitution and the Bill of Rights initially provided safeguards designed to protect the powers of the States, and restrict the power and growth of the Federal Government. With those in place, look at how those intentions have been circumvented through the years to enable our governmental structure to evolve into the "giant Washington fiasco" we have today. Noble words of the past have little impact before the political pressures and perceived needs of the moment.
That condition is what makes careful consideration and public knowledge of the potential impact that will result from changes in the philosophical structure of our Supreme Court the most critical element of our governmental processes. Our next President may select and nominate as many as four Supreme Court Justices during his term of office. The legacy that those selections represent could change the course of our nation for decades to come. If an imbalanced, ultra-liberal court is created, the impact on our society, our economic processes, our international standing, and national legal systems could be huge. It may constitute "change" which endangers the basic foundations of our nation.
One of our most basic, assumed 2nd amendment rights was almost taken from us last week. By a narrow 5-4 vote this court upheld your right to own a gun for the protection of your family and property. The anti-gun interest had attempted to instill an interpretation that the "right to bear arms" specified clearly in the 2nd Amendment which is part of the "Bill of Rights", was referring to militias and not individuals.
These anti-gun advocates would rather have us live under a system where we were defenseless and totally at the mercy of the armed criminals who might invade our homes and properties. We would expect "big brother" to always protect us, since we are perceived as being incapable of protecting ourselves. After all, we have not been certified by a bureaucrat as having the necessary documented licenses and abilities to use a gun in our defense.
What would really happen is that the "protector police" would brag about their twelve minute response time to the scene, which means that you and your family would probably have been dead for only eight minutes before they got there. They would then conduct a precise investigation, possibly arrest the villain, and after spending a couple of million dollars in tax monies for legal proceedings would convict him to a long prison term, which would later be cut to only a few years by some liberal Judge, and finally a liberal parole board would give him early release. I would rather have the right to deal with the situation myself on my own property, at the instant it occurs. Last week we came within one vote of losing that important right.
Through legislative actions and judicial interpretations many of our basic property and personal rights have already been seriously eroded or eliminated. We should all be very, very protective of the rights and liberties we still have. Stay on guard and get involved any time these rights are threatened. Do this and you will be Getting It Right. "Happy 4th of July!"
RUDAMENTS- Odds and Ends Worth Mentioning:
#1. The possibility of a privately funded toll road coming through Jackson County that would link Montgomery and Dothan to I-10 and the coastal areas has aroused much uproar from misinformed property owners in the Cottondale area. Rampant rumors have spread about the abuse of land owners through the use of "eminent domain" to force the road through the area. Personally, I too would voice loud opposition if any single land owner is forced to sell their land in any manner. Since this is not a federal or state project, the issue of eminent domain will remain at the local level for decision making.
However, if a route can be found that allows a path for the road with all involved land owners being willing and happy sellers, then I think there would be many very worthwhile benefits to all of the citizens of our county if the road came through Jackson County instead of another county. The development that would occur at the interchanges from this road would create industrial parks, job producing new businesses for our future generations, and the taxes they would pay would add significant revenues to our county government and our school systems. This would result in less growth in taxes for all property owners. For example, Family Dollar is already paying over $700,000 per year in taxes to the county and is the largest taxpayer in the county. This road could bring in other similar businesses. This same vocal group of land owners would probably also be the loudest complainers if our property taxes jumped upward.
For those Cottondale property owners that do not want to sell, I think they should merely put a "Not for Sale" sign on their land and keep their mouth shut while the overall situation is evaluated. Ill informed, irrational, and inconsiderate behavior demeans us all.
#2. Marianna’s electric utility, Florida Public Utilities, has sent out notices of another upcoming rate increase for its customers. This time the increase will be 11.1%, which will translate to approximately $15-$20 per week for the average household, or $180 to $240 per year. This comes on the heels of the huge 40% increase they received in January.
What can the average struggling citizen do about this situation? There are two actions we can take that might have some impact on the future costs and increases we will have to endure. First, we can all urge our State representatives to restore the practice of electing the representatives of the Public Service Commission. The state should be made into seven utility districts and a member of the commission elected from each district. Second, we can encourage the City of Marianna to actively begin investigating the city’s options when the FPU franchise comes up for renewal in 2010. They need to start now.