Stuff to do: Starkville Tea Party “SAVE OUR INDEPENDENCE !” RALLY

Comments

1. Jim Gafford says:
   July 1, 2009 at 4:43 pm

   Is this the same Starkville Tea Party that less than a week ago was celebrating the fact that freedoms expressly granted by our constitution weren’t based in fact? I find it strange that they would now be protesting the loss of these same freedoms. Very interesting.
2. mark says:
   July 2, 2009 at 11:56 am

   i haven’t noticed that i’ve lost some freedoms so if they could let me know what i’ve lost i would greatly appreciate it. oh, i just thought of one. the freedom to keep my shoes on at the airport.

   as for the non-representative representatives, i offer the following information:

   official year first elected
   cochran(r) 1978
   wicker(r) 1994
   harper(r) 2008
   beckett(r) 2004
   chism(r) 2000
   reed(r) 2004
   ellis(d) 1980
   jackson(r) 2004
   turner(d) 1993

   if these folks (excluding harper as he was just elected) are not representative, you have certainly had plenty of time to vote them out of office.
3. Timothy says:
   July 3, 2009 at 10:28 pm

   If there is a group of people who protest being over taxed and choose to say that the “reps” really are not representative; they have the right and duty to do so, as far as having the ability to vote out the above mentioned reps. It takes more than a few concerned citizens to oust them, as the majority of people have already drank the kool-aid.
4. ko says:
   July 5, 2009 at 1:09 pm

   “i haven’t noticed that i’ve lost some freedoms so if they could let me know what i’ve lost i would greatly appreciate it. oh, i just thought of one. the freedom to keep my shoes on at the airport.”

   This comment concerns me greatly about educating our own citizens about our country, its consitution, bill of rights, etc. I don’t proclaim to be a scholar in this area and others will need to chime in.

   5th Amendment. Iminent Domain; “nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.” Recently our state wanted more legislation to insure big business they could get the land they wanted for their company. The argument made was that to lure big business to Mississippi, the state had to insure them the private citizens MUST sell their land. Freedom Lost-

   Second Amendment – Militia (United States), Sovereign state, Right to keep and bear arms. While I am not a gun owner, have you tried to purchase a gun lately? If your name gets on the wrong “list”, you won’t be purchasing a gun. Freedom lost-

   First Amendment – Establishment Clause, Free Exercise Clause; freedom of speech, of the press, Freedom of Religion, and of assembly; right to petition. Recently, the current administration in the White House wanted talk radio stations to be forced to give both sides of any opinion. This proposed legislation was a direct target to conservative talk radio (since most talk radio is conservative). I believe their tactic was going to target the renewal of their FCC license – guess it wouldn’t be legislation, but not really sure. Hence, censorship through nonrewal of broadcast license through the FCC. Freedom lost- (doesn’t the talk of this just scare you?)

   Fourth Amendment – Protection from unreasonable search and seizure. The Patriot Act states that no warrant is needed if you are a suspected terrorist. Freedom Lost-

   Tenth Amendment – Powers of States and people. The Federal Government gets bigger each year and dictates many policies to our state. One example would be our Federal Department of Education. The states really have little control over education any more. Freedom Lost-

   If you get on the no-fly list, that means that you can not move about freely within the US. There are some who are on the list due to name similarities or mistakes. This is a travesty and makes me wonder what is next?

   Additionally, the Climate Bill that is in Congress right now sets policy on energy and its use. We will be taxed greatly and will be told what type of cars we must drive, what energy sources we must use, etc. Our lives will change significantly is this bill passes as written. Freedom lost-

   This response only includes a few freedoms that I could think of initially. But, any time government gets bigger, the more freedoms you lose. Therefore, I am shocked that someone would really believe that Americans haven’t lost freedoms. Our work is cut out for us in terms of educating our citizens~
5. Bethany Stich says:
   July 6, 2009 at 10:16 am

   Ko,

   This is well thought out. First, I think there was a little sarcasm in Mark’s comments about shoes. Second, I would just say let’s be wary about the difference between freedoms lost and freedoms wisely or unwisely limited. I do agree the Patriot Act is one of the worst pieces of legislation in our country’s history. It is right up there with the Alien and Sedition Acts. However, as parts of the act are challenged in court, many of the most egregious parts have been ruled unconstitutional. Furthermore, the Climate Bill will also be challenged in Court and stands a decent chance of being found unconstitutional (it will be difficult case for interstate commerce). Finally, the Supreme Court has already heard the Kelo case on imminent domain and found these kinds of takings are allowable under our Constitution (granted, this ruling is one of worst I’ve seen).

   Though I believe our Constitution is still strong in principle, we must not overstate its value. Let’s not hero worship the Constitution to the point that logic has no place. There is a logical case for the restriction of fire arms to certain felons or mentally ill citizens in order to protect the public’s welfare. Also, having an educated citizenry is necessary for a healthy democracy. The No Child Left Behind Act, though requires a certain level of uniformity across states for testing and is indeed flawed, is actually aimed at bettering out democracy – not ruining it or taking our freedoms. Remember – it is a DEMOCRATIZING CONSTITUTIONAL REPUBLIC – all three is one.

   I believe the two early posts were meant to highlight the irony of this group that merely a week ago tried to convince us the separation of church and state is a lie and false – essentially taking away our freedom of religion – and now wants us to attend a meeting to protect our freedoms; And to highlight the longevity of the MS representatives that are allegedly non-representative. It would appear there has been plenty of time to change these elected officials if that was indeed the will of the people of MS. I agree we should stay ever vigilant in our fight for independence and freedom, but also understand we are a democracy, a community of citizens. Sometimes, what is best for me and mine isn’t what is best for the nation.
6. mark says:
   July 6, 2009 at 11:14 am

   ko,

   thank you, thank you, thank you! all i ask for is someone that makes a comment to simply provide some justifications as to why they feel the way they do. coming out and saying that you have lost freedoms without stating which freedom has been lost has little merit and is subject to interpretation (like my shoe reference, silly as it is.)

   so, just to throw in my two cents:

   imminent domain: if you are compensated justly, which by my interpretation is being paid the value of your land as it relates to your tax bill, you haven’t lost a freedom.

   guns: do you really need an assualt rifle to hunt? probably not. do you need a handgun when every home security expert says that the safest gun to have to protect your home is a shotgun? probably not. but if you like to hunt, i have no problems with you owning a variety of guns designed for hunting.

   speech/religion: i must admit i am a bit biased on this one. i hate talk radio and think it might be the single biggest divisive element that exists (outside of religion) in our nation today. getting rid of talk radio would be a step in the right direction as far as i’m concerned. as for religion, i don’t want the gov’t telling me where to go to church and i don’t want the church telling me how i should vote. or that i can’t drink on sunday.

   search: i think searching my shoes is a bit unreasonable.

   states rights: i’m not sure what to do with education. i don’t think anyone has a good answer for that. marriage is another example.

   all in all, thanks for making me spend some time thinking on a monday morning. i think these are the kind of discussions we should all be having.

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