fourth amendment

296 – Spying on American Gun Owners Act

Benjamin Franklin said:

“They who would give up an essential liberty for temporary security, deserve neither liberty or security.”

Yet with the promise of keeping us safe from “gun violence”, “violent extremists”, and “domestic terrorists”, Congress wants you to give up your essential liberty to be free from unreasonable searches. H.R. 5764 is the first step to a writ of assistance against anyone who buys or sells firearms. This has been done before, so why shouldn’t Congress think they can get away with it again?

287 – Privacy vs Government Interest

Most Americans believe they have a right to privacy. Many Americans want governments to protect them from “bad actors”. What happens when our right to privacy collides with our desire for government to protect us? A recent Supreme Court case out of California involves the question of how far government can go to protect us. Specifically, is it necessary for governments to collect data about citizens in order to find criminals? As William Pitt (the Younger) said “Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom.” While this case deals with California law, we should be asking bigger question. Does “government interest” trump our rights and the Constitutions of our states and the United States?

262 – Constitutional Exceptions

A recent case argued before the Supreme Court revolved around what is called the “community caretaker exception” to the Fourth Amendment. This is an excellent example of how constitutional law, which is nothing more than the opinion of judges, is being used to circumvent the Constituiton of the United States.

253 – Congressional Speech Police

Did you hear about the representatives who pressured cable providers to stop hosting news outlets they don’t like? No, that isn’t the straight line to a joke, it’s real life. And if we aren’t careful, it’s free speech in America that will become a joke.

164 – Protecting Your Privacy From All The Wrong People

Senator Moran has submitted a bill to protect your data. Unfortunately, it won’t protect it from the most dangerous actors of all, governments.

152 – Are Illegal Warrants Killing Us?

A 21 year old man is dead today. The facts presented by the family and eyewitnesses should be disturbing to all of us. Are we secure in our homes? Under what circumstances does government have the authority to conduct armed raids?

Twisted Judiciary

Have you ever watched a contortionist and marvel at the way they can twist their bodies? Well looking at the case Jessop v City of Fresno showed a level of linguistic and judicial contortions that not only baffle the mind but crush the soul.

089 – Pondering the Recent Mass Murders

With the all to expected reaction to the recent mass murders, I think it’s time we started a discussion that is both frank and calm about the state of our society and how we react to it. We’ll ponder this next, on The Constitution Study.