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Web Letter

I can sympathize with the idea that during the immediate aftermath of 9/11 our government acted out of fear. It is obvious how unprepared they were for any catastophic event then, or later when Katrina came. This being said, we can never again forgive our government for illegal acts in times of stress or struggle. These are precisely the times when we must rely on laws to protect us as individuals, as well as the constitutional rights of all Americans. Do we or do we not believe in the law and the consequences of illegal actions?

Web Letter

David Cole, a Yalie lawyer and Georgetown law professor, wants to nail fellow lawyer John Ashcroft's forked tongue to the courthouse door. Wonderful, I agree. I'll believe it when I see it, but I don't expect to see it!

It is surely true that only a properly anointed lawyer gets to nail another properly anointed lawyer.

Some observers learned a tidbit about the elitist legal scam thirty-five years ago when lawyer Leon Jaworski slapped lawyer Tricky Dick Nixon into ignominious disgrace. A very special situation, because Tricky Dicky, a Republican lawyer, done his Democrat lawyer brethren down and dirty. Twenty-one of the twenty-three convicted Watergate conspirators were trained lawyers.

If you realize that the elitist lawyers, regardless of party, are always farceuring and shadow boxing, it all becomes much less mystifying.

Don't show and don't tell. Most of all don't get caught with your legal pants down, as did President Clinton, another Yalie lawyer, who barely escaped ignominious disgrace at the hands of his brother and sister lawyers.

Recently President Obama, a Harvard lawyer, consulted with his trained legal "counsels" to come up with legal justifications to circumvent a Congressional law disallowing business or talking with a designated terrorist group. Since Iran has been so designated, Bama's legal geniuses came-up-with the legal wordsmithing to circumvent the sacred law allowing non-sexual political intercourse with the so-labeled Iranian terrorists.

This is the real kicker and the genius lawyering that is always there, if you look for it. Pres. Bush and Ashcroft routinely and laughingly circumvented all manner of laws with so-called signing statements etc. as designed by "the best" lawyers and legal counsels. Justifying murder and mayhem takes real creative lawyering by the legally trained, preferably from elite law schools

Now Pres. Wham Bam, himself trained in the lawyerly arts, is playing circumvention of the law that directly supports all Bush's illegal circumventions and murderous excesses.

Therefore, prosecuting President Bush and his lawyer/geniuses, including Ashcroft, for "circumventing the law" becomes so legally convoluted as to be impossible! Yhere are laws, right? And we are a country of laws, right? Government of laws? Or, government of lawyers trained to circumvent the laws.

Ambrose Bierce in The Devil's Dictionary (1906): "LAWYER, n. One skilled in circumvention of the law." Only a trained lawyer could understand it.

Web Letter

As a resident of the Detroit area for most of my life, one of the cultural aspects I've always enjoyed and been proud of is our large Middle Eastern population. I'm grateful for how my Muslim friends have enhanced my understanding of all humankind, as well as myself. One of the most important reasons why they decided to remain in this country (many are naturalized citizens) is their respect for our Constitution. The fear that I witnessed after this particular Ashcroft decision was carried out was so palpable that we couldn't share our normal political discourse. Trashing the Constitution based on fear of what might happen next has motivated all of the darkest moments in our history. Simply stated, it is fundamentally wrong and un-American. I would like to personally thank the Bush appointee who authored this decision and his/her peers who stood up and demonstrated the best of our character.

Web Letter

Even if there were errors made, Mr. Cole comes across as if he thinks that Mr. Ashcroft is some sort of an evil person that wished to discrimminate against Muslims. Perhaps our country did break laws or violate the Constitution. But it is worth remembering the terrible events on 9/11, and particularly worth remembering that those evil terrorists who did the acts initially came into our country legally. In the immediate 9/11 aftermath, we all feared more attacks. Our government had to do something. Perhaps looking back now they made errors. But this doesn't mean that those government officials weren't acting in good faith, trying to protect over 300 million people to the best of their abilities. I think that prosecuting them now, or "holding them accountable" (whatever that means) would be a big mistake.