spaw,

I've been "lurking" since I stopped posting a while back (during one of the flame wars), got busy on other forums and with life. When troll got back from Japan he rekindled my interest.

But it's nice to be back and find so many familiar 'faces'

Anyway, it's a delicate balance. Too little interpretation stagnates society and encourages work-arounds - too much (claiming that the times have changed so much that necessity demands....) and we edge close to the danger expressed by William Pitt (the Elder) "Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves."

We always need to keep in mind that aside from making sure their interests were protected, the founding fathers had a basic distrust of giving the government too much power. I am all for broad interpretation when it comes to individual liberties but demand strict interpretation when it comes to the powers and scope of government.

That seems to have gotten reversed somewhere along the line.

Forget the Patriot Act (which in most particulars applies to non-citizens - though that Great and Evil Little Man [Ashcroft] is working on that 'problem'). Look at the "War on Drugs" and the loosening of constraints on search warrants, on seizure of property and all the other "necessary" infringements. Look at the alien and Sedition Acts during the Civil War. What is new these days is the attempt to "rewrite" the structural intent of the Constitution and subvert or by-pass the balance of powers.

Then I came across a statistic that claims that the reading level for a High School graduate in the US in 2001 was 4th grade 7th month and it explained a lot.

Regards

John