> D. Jay Newman wrote:
> > There are many legal protections embedded both in the US Constitution
> > and also in law.
> >   
> These protections are VERY selectively enforced. For example, the US 

Agreed. I remember hearing somebody say that the Bill of Rights was not
put in to protect the powerless, but rather to protect the rich if *they*
ever became powerless.

> constitution says that
> "Legal tender consists of gold and silver coin."  But all such backing 
> of US currency stopped

I would have to check that out. I belive that there was an amendment that
changed this.

> years ago. When I was a teenager, I could redeem a dollar for a genuine 
> SILVER specie dollar.

Yes. Of course, that was quite a while ago. :)

> > The system isn't perfect, but it's not as bad as it seems.
> 
> I am very disappointed with the selective way the Constitution is 
> enforced. Younger folks don't know
> the way it was, once, but there was a time when no law enforcement 
> officer could break into the sanctity
> of a person's home without a SERIOUS court order. These days, they just 
> fill out a 3"x5" card and start
> pounding away on the wrong house. The Supreme court ruled recently that 

I agree. I deplore not only the loss of liberty, but also the general
population that allows this to happen.

> anybody's house could be
> declared forfeit and torn down just because when the newer  house is 
> built, the community can have greater
> tax revenue. Yet, nobody else seems to care... so why should I?

It's a bit more complicated that that, but I also agree that this ruling
expanded the rights of local government way too much.
-- 
D. Jay Newman           ! Author of:
jay@sprucegrove.com     ! _Linux Robotics: Programming Smarter Robots_
http://enerd.ws/robots/ ! "Heros aren't born, they're cornered."
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