The Bill of What?

[speckledbird]

Amendment I
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

I would hasten your attention to the above in bold...I have a bone to pick with this one, and on behalf of all victims of heinous crimes, I shall.

Four little words that ultimately changed my life. Beaten and kidnapped in my own car back in 1992 in Highland Park, city within Dallas, Texas, yes, I had angels riding along with the two that assaulted...needless to say, thankfully, not my time. However, after spending many hours with them and ultimately giving them many dollars, I was released, with the words, "if you call the Police, we will kill you". The Police, the least of my worries, as the above City's Newspaper got the police feed of the incident and promptly wrote a third of a page article, explicitly detailing the whole event and including my name...dandy. Yes, the woman who wrote the article did call me asking me if I had a comment...I pled with her not to run the article...she laughed and ran it anyway. I was forced to flee. Yes, I went back and prosecuted, not pretty...please, someone educate jurors, for I am now unable to serve in this capacity for obvious reasons.

Point: We now have millions of victims thanks to Katrina and Rita, many of whom are now victims for a 2nd time...stand up, people, speak up. Get a grip on what's happening, how it happened and how we can make a change. Let's Roll, for them, shall we?
http://livewire.fm/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=&daysprune=30&f=7

[Zanzi]

Wow! What a terrible experience and what a monumental disrespect toward you and your situation. It really seems that some of the "news hounds" are more interested in a quick story than some quality reporting for the people they allegedly care so much about. From what I understand, it used to be a lot worse in the heyday of the newspapers, say the 1940s through the late 1950s. Of course, that is little consolation when you end up in the media crossfire.

I always wonder about the television crews who shove mikes under the noses of grieving parents who just found out that their kids were shot in a gang killing - disgusting!

[kelkat]

It use to be that reporters were there to report the news. Now they say it's their job to help us "understand."

It doesn't suprise me that they had little concern for you. But you may get your chance as a jury member yet. Who knows!

[hokeshel]

If our founding fathers knew the way the constitution is misused, I think they would be highly offended and would be the first ones to stand up and explain what these rights really mean, what they are meant to protect. Many of these men lost their lives, families and homes because of their dedication to the constitution and people use it as a means to get away with their atrocious bevavior.

[NicoMoon]

:) If our founding fathers knew the way the constitution is misused, I think they would be highly offended and would be the first ones to stand up and explain what these rights really mean, what they are meant to protect. Many of these men lost their lives, families and homes because of their dedication to the constitution and people use it as a means to get away with their atrocious bevavior.

Yes, it would be great to have a visit from Ben Franklin, or Thomas Jefferson, wouldn't that be a treat?

They did leave us with plenty in the way of inspiration and explanation though, and they certainly understood that the work they did would only serve society as well as future generations protected and perpetuated it.

So no, I guess we won't be seeing Old Ben or Tom, but we can certainly keep them alive in our own minds and hearts by renewing our own understanding of the Constitution and the process that went into creating it. Above and beyond that, we really do have to be responsible, educated, involved citizens ourselves.

OK, sorry, I know Ben or Tom would have said it all a lot better, but I had to give it a shot anyway! :)