Best Failed Legislation

We applaud Jackson County legislator Scott Burnett, who tried in April to get the county legislature to just say no to John Ashcroft's freaky U.S.A. Patriot act. Since September 11, 2001, his resolution noted, "Americans have witnessed considerable expansion of federal governmental authority and consequent restriction of civil liberty, justice, and human dignity and security in the areas of electronic surveillance, racial or ethnic profiling, monitoring of social views, expression, and associational activities, search and seizure without probable cause or reasonable suspicion, trials closed to the public, deprivation of the right to counsel and to a speedy, fair, and public trial, monitoring of counsel-client confidences, investigation without specific cause, and detention without charge." Burnett's resolution argued that it was impossible to believe that the broad, sweeping powers of Ashcroft's Patriot Act would be used with restraint, fairness or justification. He asked only that the Jackson County Legislature resolve that it remains "fully committed to the protection of civil rights and civil liberties for all people including citizens and non-citizens alike." That was too much for some of his colleagues, who let his effort die in committee. But at least he tried.