Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/01/31
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]2000-02-01-01:18:22 D Khong: > I have found that when police officers have the power to do this and > do it well, the society is generally safer to live in. It is a small > price to sacrifice some degree of personal freedom for overall peace > of mind. Visitors from abroad tell me that I am fortunate to live in > one of the safest places on planet earth. Interesting mindset. I think that many in the US (and I'd certainly be among them) see even the slightest erosions of personal freedoms as dangerous ratcheting movements, never likely to be recovered from, down a slippery slope toward a police state -- which, however benign its face, is nonetheless anathema. Which brings up the only real reason I have to despise Clinton: his cheerful willingness, nay enthusiasm, for giving away the rights of individuals (and thus the very stuff which makes the US what it should be) for "the good of the community". Big Brother with a goofy grin is more, not less, dangerous than a scarier, sterner figure. Anybody see that article by William Gibson about his visit to Singapore, describing it as "Disneyland with the Death Penalty"? Scared the crap out of me. Seems like the vision Giuliani has for New York, too, which is why he *annoys* the crap out of me. <glass-half-full-mode> Nice to be a few pounds lighter, I guess. </glass-half-full-mode>