(no subject)

[essayel]

This has jolted me out of my recent silence because i find this so unbelievable that it has to be worth mentioning:

http://www.livejournal.com/users/anniesj/331112.html

One would think that the US secret service have more important things to do than to doorstep people who make a few jokes at the governments expense - it must cost a lot too. Haven't they got better things to spend their money on?

Of course, in the UK it's still techinically treason to disparage the Royal Family but I've never heard of anyone getting a knock on the door in the night over it - otherwise half the country's comedians would be perpetually banged up.

Anyway, since this is a country with NO constitution and NO rights to free speech and so forth, if anyone would care to email me their opinions of George Dubyah I will post them here for them - anonymously of course.

If the opinions are just yikky I can't promise not to edit - I'm like that. You'll just have to take the chance that they fall within the bounds of what I consider to be good taste.

Comments

[mynuet.livejournal.com]

The Secret Service, like any other government agency, is legally required to investigate any reports it receives - including the ones that are obviously ludicrous. Yeah, it was a few stupid jokes - but as soon as someone called them up and reported it, they didn't have the option to just say "Eh, it's obvious this is just someone being stupid and petty and pointing out someone's jokes as being a threat" and then just crumple it up and toss it in the garbage; they have to send someone out to investigate, or they are themselves breaking the law. These regulations were put in place to prevent officers from ignoring actual threats - say, for example, an agent's sister was printing money in her garden shed, the neighbors call the Secret Service, the agent can't pull strings to get dear ol' sis a ticket out of being investigated. It's a pretty rough experience to have law enforcement show up on your doorstep, but the problem here isn't the law or the administration (the laws involved pre-date Bush by a long, long time), it's the person who thought it was somehow okay to make a false report.

Personally, I'm not voting in this election - I like Bush slightly better than Kerry, but as long as the election is over I don't really care who wins. Yay for apathy!

[whiskeygirl8.livejournal.com]

You said exactly what I was trying to say, only a whole lot better.

[essayel.livejournal.com]

Apathy has a lot to be said for it - except I can't be bothered.