Tuesday, December 13, 2005

Wondering What Other "Secret" Laws There Are

If there really is a "law" on the books that is not public, how is it that people are to comply with it? Indeed, this is America after all, no? I'm begining to like this Gilmore guy. There's a great quote on his web location that is particularly salient in the W, Rove and Co Orwellian years we are experiencing here (patriots that we are, needing acts and all): "There are good people with bad papers, and bad people with good papers (Bertold Brecht)."
"The government could neither confirm nor deny the existence of the order. I won't say that doesn't sound peculiar," Waldman conceded after a discussion about presenting under seal to judges in closed chambers.

Waldman explained that he was bound by the SSI classification not to disclose anything about the security order. Later, he told judges he personally does not understand why it was designated SSI, and the whole thing "has a peculiar Orwellian feel to it."

Harrison took the matter to task.

"It's not SSI, it's the law. It's the law, and it must be made public. They (government officials) say, 'If we made the law public we wouldn't catch as many bad guys.' That is a very dangerous road for this country to go down," Harrison argued. "This is America. We do not have secret laws."

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