The 4th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled yesterday that South Carolina's "Choose Life" license plates violate the First Amendment:

A three-judge panel unanimously ruled Monday that the plates, which bear the slogan "Choose Life" violate the First Amendment by giving anti-abortion advocates a forum to express their beliefs without giving abortion rights supporters a similar forum. "By limiting access to a specialty license plate to those who agree with its pro-life position, the State has distorted the forum in favor of its own viewpoint," the court wrote. "...South Carolina has engaged in viewpoint discrimination by allowing only the Choose Life plate."

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals took a different position in 2002 and upheld Louisiana's "choose life" plates, finding a lack of standing to sue. This could mean the Supreme Court will make the final decision on the issue. Meanwhile, in Georgia today, the Senate approved "choose life" license plates.

We have a simple solution. Allow "Choose Life" license plates, provided they include the phrase "End the Death Penalty."

[links via How Appealing]

The Wall Street Journal (paid subscription required) reports that in many states, police are opting for blood tests instead of breath tests for suspected drunk drivers -- even if they have to take the blood by force.

The tests raise two nettlesome questions: How much force should police be able to use in extracting blood from uncooperative suspects? And should medical professionals, who are honor-bound to obey patients' treatment wishes and protect their privacy, be compelled to do otherwise?

Prosecutors say the blood tests are more accurate than breath tests. Also, many drivers refuse to take either test, and police say you can't force someone to take a breath test, but you can strap someone down to draw blood from them.

At least eight states -- Alaska, Arizona, Iowa, Florida, Indiana, Michigan, Nevada and Texas -- have in recent years enacted statutes specifically permitting police to use reasonable force to obtain blood samples in DUI cases.
Laws in at least seven other states allow police to take blood without the driver's consent, without explicitly authorizing force. In most other states, court rulings have authorized reasonable force to obtain blood. Many such rulings cite a little-known fact about driving laws in the U.S.: All motorists are considered to have consented to a search of their blood, breath or urine. Such "implied consent" laws were introduced in New York in 1953, and today all 50 states and the District of Columbia have them.

Here are some excerpts from Richard Clarke's book in which he describes various White House officials. Here's what he says about Attorney General John Ashcroft:

Clarke criticizes Ashcroft over his response to the 2001 attacks, especially over handling of alleged "dirty bomber" Jose Padilla as an enemy combatant. "The attorney general, rather than bringing us together, managed to persuade much of the country that the needed reforms of the Patriot Act were actually the beginning of fascism." Clarke says an unidentified staffer asked him after meeting with Ashcroft early in 2001, "He can't really be that slow, can he?" Clarke's response: "He did lose a Senate re-election to a dead man."

Against All Enemies
by Richard Clarke

Update: Avedon Carol does a terrific job putting the Clarke pieces together.

[comments now closed]

Written by a friend of a friend.....

JUST A BAD DREAM

I remember it as if it were yesterday.

A little over a year ago, I heard this awful rumor that the Government was going to take my tax money and spend it on things like health care and education.

I was outraged. "How can they do this?" I screamed. "There are hospitals in Iraq -- the country that I, and virtually everyone I know, had always cared about more than any other -- that are as bad as some of the ones in our town. And we're doing nothing about it."

"Poverty, schmoverty," I said. "Those people in the South and in the so-called 'ghettos' who go to sleep hungry would probably have eaten fast foods anyway, so we're actually doing them a favor by keeping them poor. So let's get a few hundred billion over to Iraq. I mean, what are our priorities, anyway?"

And what bigger mistake could we make than improving our school systems? If all our kids got a decent education, they'd probably qualify for college -- and for a family that can't afford grade school supplies, think of what a nightmare those college tuitions would be.

So for God's sake, let's get English textbooks for those children in Iraq -- before they attack us again.

Lost jobs, increased personal bankruptcies? Give me a break. Those are problems-come-lately. Saddam Hussein was killing his own people more than twelve years ago.

But then I woke up and realized that this awful rumor was just a bad dream. Thank God for President Bush.

Author and journalist Rick Freedman is in Europe to compile a photo essay of the European anti-war, anti-Bush protests. He's got some good pictures up on his blog, World on Fire. Rick describes his journey:

I'm in Europe developing a photo essay illustrating the European anti-war,
anti-Bush action that doesn't get covered by the docile US media. I've posted a
photo essay with some of my exclusive new stuff on my "World on Fire" blog. I
think you'll find it pretty interesting - the atmosphere of conflict and tension
here is impossible to grasp by watching the CNN ten-second newsbite. Please stop by and take a look.

Here's our favorite picture, from Munich.

by TChris

Four days ago, it appeared that Pakistani troops had surrounded the number two Al Qaeda leader, Ayman al-Zawahri. (TalkLeft provided information about al-Zawahri here.)

Since then, Pakistani officials have declined to say that al-Zawahri is being protected by Al Qaeda militants in the heavy fighting, but have speculated that the intensity of the fighting means that the militants are protecting a "high value target." Now, as the fighting wanes, the hope of capturing that unidentified target may be fading. News sources report that key figures in the battle may have escaped through hidden tunnels.

by TChris

What do John Kerry, Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., Albert Einstein, Frank Sinatra and Marilyn Monroe have in common? The FBI spied on all of them.

Kerry attracted the FBI's attention when, as a leader of Vietnam Veterans Against the War, he exercised his First Amendment right to protest the war.

The Los Angeles Times reports FBI files just now coming to public light show Kerry was watched closely by the FBI in 1971 and 1972: following him everywhere he went, recording his speeches, and taking pictures of the future politician and others involved in the VVAW.

An FBI memo in 1972 recommended that the surveillance end. The author concluded that no evidence linked Kerry to any violent activity, and that Kerry's interest in politics was "apparently legitimate."

Kerry requested his FBI file 17 years ago, after he was elected to the Senate. The FBI withheld much of the information that has now been made public. Kerry is understandably perturbed.

"I'm surprised by extent of it," says the Democratic presidential candidate, in an interview with the L.A. Times. "I'm offended by the intrusiveness of it. And I'm disturbed that it was all conducted absent of some showing of any legitimate probable cause. It's an offense to the Constitution. It's out of order."

The abusive use of police power to monitor protected political action eventually persuaded Congress to restrict the FBI's ability to spy on American citizens. As much as John Ashcroft may believe that such restrictions hamper a war on terror, Kerry's experience serves as a reminder that the government should not be permitted to spy upon any American's legitimate exercise of the right to protest.

Today's hall of shame award goes to Ohio. An investigation by the Cincinnati Enquirer resulted in a new report that finds:

At Ohio psychiatric centers, workers molested children, denied them food or gave them alcohol and drugs. Some kids suffered broken bones. Others lived in homes so dirty they urinated on the floor by their beds. Taxpayers shell out $160 to $1,000 a day for each mentally ill child who lives in these private treatment centers.

Why are these kids in private facilities subsidized by the state? Because Ohio closed all its juvenile hospital facilities:

...the state closed most of its mental institutions in the late 1980s and early 1990s - and created few programs to replace them. Ohio once operated 17 mental hospitals caring for more than 20,000 children and adults. Today, the state runs nine hospitals caring for 1,100 adults - and no children.

If this article doesn't ruin your day, nothing will.

Bruce Godschalk was released from prison after serving 15 years for two rapes DNA later proved he didn't commit. Details of his case are here.

Mr. Godschalk has received a $1.6 million settlement from the township of Upper Merion, PA--it was the townships detectives that extracted a false confession from him. He has already received $740,000 from Montgomery County.

The Supreme Court is considering a case of "Papers, Please?" In other words, if the police think you may have been involved in a crime and ask you to identify yourself, do you have to answer?

That is the question before the US Supreme Court Monday, as the justices consider whether a Nevada law requiring suspects to identify themselves whenever requested by police violates constitutional protections of privacy and freedom from self-incrimination. The case is significant because it gives the court a chance to more closely define how deeply law-enforcement officials may intrude into private lives.

If the court establishes a bright-line rule barring police from forcing such disclosures, it will highlight a new focus by the justices on individual liberty. If, on the other hand, the court upholds the Nevada law, it could prompt other states and the federal government to adopt similar tactics amid heightened concern about possible terrorist activities within the US.

The case involves Dudley Hiibel, a Nevada citizen who refused to provide his name to a deputy sheriff. Hiibel's position, with which we agree, is the police can ask, but you shouldn't have to answer.

The candidates' latest campaign contribution figures are out. If you want to boot Bush, give to Kerry, now and often. The numbers speak for themselves:

Democratic Sen. John Kerry's presidential election campaign reported on Sunday it had collected $8.4 million last month, well shy of the $13.7 million haul of rival President Bush. Kerry's latest take, disclosed in a filing with the Federal Election Commission, barely outstripped his spending and pushed his campaign war chest up only slightly to $2.4 million. In contrast, Bush's re-election campaign had $110 million on hand at the end of last month.

Kerry's March internet campaign has raised him $14 million so far. Let's keep it going.

Pharmacies in Canada will soon be provided with Government marijuana to dispense to patients:

Officials are organizing a pilot project in British Columbia, modelled on a year-old program in the Netherlands, that would allow medical users to buy marijuana at their local drugstore. Currently, there are 78 medical users in Canada permitted to buy Health Canada marijuana, which is grown in Flin Flon, Man. The 30-gram bags of dried buds, sold for $150 each, now are sent by courier directly to patients or to their doctors.

But the department is changing the regulations to allow participating pharmacies to stock marijuana for sale to approved patients without a doctor's prescription, similar to regulations governing so-called morning-after pills, emergency contraceptives that can be obtained directly from a pharmacist without the need for a doctor's signature.

The quality of the pot isn't up to snuff yet, but the Government promises it's working on the problem.

A department spokeswoman says tests are under way to improve the marijuana after numerous complaints from users. "We are taking the concerns of users seriously," said Aggie Adamczyk.