Urbie the card-carrying member

Of the ACLU, that is. What?, I hear you asking. Has the Urbster lost his marbles and actually joined an organization he once derided as the American Criminal Lovers' Union? Yes, it's true -- that I've joined, that is; not that I've lost my marbles.

That's because in recent years, I have become increasingly alarmed and/or disgusted with the way the Federal government has slowly turned its back on our history and the Constitution. The last straw, or straws, came in the form of the Bush Administration's warrantless-wiretap and IP-snooping schemes, which will do nothing to stop terrorism while doing a lot to give King George the ability to gain information on us that he has no business gaining.

The ACLU has just filed a lawsuit that hopes to end the NSA's warrantless-wiretap program. The administration, of course, claims that the suit is a grave threat to national security. Well, I say the Bush Administration is a far bigger threat to national security.

So last night, I surfed over to ACLU.org and signed up for a year's membership. I'm not entirely on-board with everything the ACLU stands for -- in particular, I do not agree that illegal searches and seizures should result in criminals getting off the hook.

I'm currently doing an internship at a law firm that does a lot of criminal defense work -- and the party line is that when a drug mule gets pulled over with 100 pounds of weed in the trunk, it's considered a "victory" if the mule gets off scot-free because the cops pulled him over for the wrong reason. I do not agree with this philosophy -- I think if the cops pulled the mule over for the wrong reason, that should be grounds for a second legal proceeding to punish the cop, as is the case in some countries (Canada?), while the criminal should still be punished.

But I digress. The ACLU is putting its money where its mouth is and standing up to the Bush Administration. This alone is enough reason to put philosophical differences aside and join up.

Urb's Blog