Bye Bye to the Fourth Amendment

Does this surprise us?

The "elite powers that be" in government positions just keep chipping away at the Constitution.

A question to ponder is: "Why can't we kick these people (whether it be the president, congressman, or judge) out of office when they are clearly usurping the Constitution, the law of our land?

You know what they say about power:

"power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely"

Here is a commentary by Chuck Baldwin:

Government Cannot Be Trusted To Police Itself
By Chuck Baldwin
May 26, 2011

Archived column:
http://chuckbaldwinlive.com/home/?p=3577

So many of the words and warnings delivered by America’s Founding
Fathers are appropriate for today. Consider this sage counsel from
America’s first and greatest President, George Washington:
“Government is not reason; it is not eloquence; it is force! Like
fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master.” I was
reminded of these words when I read the following report out of the
State of Indiana.

“Overturning a common law dating back to the English Magna Carta of
1215, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled Thursday [May 12, 2011]
that Hoosiers have no right to resist unlawful police entry into their
homes.

“In a 3-2 decision, Justice Steven David writing for the court said
if a police officer wants to enter a home for any reason or no reason
at all, a homeowner cannot do anything to block the officer’s
entry.”

Justice Robert Rucker and Justice Brent Dickson dissented from the
ruling, saying the court’s decision violates the Fourth Amendment of
the US Constitution.

“In my view the majority sweeps with far too broad a brush by
essentially telling Indiana citizens that government agents may now
enter their homes illegally-that is, without the necessity of a
warrant, consent or exigent circumstances,” Rucker said.

The NW Indiana Times also reported, “This is the second major
Indiana Supreme Court ruling this week involving police entry into a
home.

“On Tuesday, the court said police serving a warrant may enter a
home without knocking if officers decide circumstances justify it.
Prior to that ruling, police serving a warrant would have to obtain a
judge’s permission to enter without knocking.”

See the report at:

http://tinyurl.com/3kae4zy

Shortly after the ISC decision, Newton County Sheriff Donald Hartman,
Sr. said he believes the ruling makes house-to-house searches
possible. According to a report at Infowars.com, Sheriff Hartman
“made it clear that he would use random house to house searches if
he believed it was necessary.”

The Infowars.com report also correctly notes that it was years of
illegal searches and seizures and seizures of the American colonists
(along with the attempt to seize the colonists’ firearms) that led
our forebears to resist the British government with force on April 19,
1775, at Lexington Green and Concord Bridge which ignited America’s
War for Independence.

See the report at:

http://tinyurl.com/3dhnx59

It may be helpful at this point to rehearse the Fourth Amendment to
the US Constitution. “The right of the people to be secure in their
persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches
and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but
upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and
particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or
things to be seized.”

With this ruling, the ISC effectively told the citizens of the State
of Indiana that the Fourth Amendment is null and void in their State.
And Sheriff Donald Hartman has effectively said that he will treat the
citizens of Newton County in much the same way that King George
treated America’s colonists--or the way Stalin’s or Mao’s police
treated the enslaved subjects of the former Soviet Union and Communist
China.

And what is also disturbing is the way government, at every level,
seems unwilling to police itself.

The reason the US Constitution limited the jurisdiction and authority
of the federal government and left states with their own jurisdiction
and (broader) authority was to serve as a check and balance against
the tyrannical tendencies of the central government. Today, however,
acts of tyranny seem to be taking place as frequently on the State and
local levels as it is at the federal level. This story out of the
Hoosier State is only the latest example.

Does anyone find it more than interesting (and even paradoxical) that
while the US military is being used more and more as international
policemen, local and State law enforcement personnel are often being
used more and more like military troops (and taking on the appearance,
procedures, and tactics of military troops)?

Traditionally, it was never the role of local and State law
enforcement personnel to act like soldiers. Police officers have no
“enemy” to seek out and destroy. Their job is to protect, not
punish. The citizens of their State, county, or city are not the
enemy.

I recently had a well-meaning police lieutenant tell me that his
primary concern was that his officers were protected. That is all well
and good, and I certainly understand his concern for his officers.
However, when a man or woman puts on the uniform of a police officer
(or sheriff’s deputy), he or she is saying that they are willing to
sacrifice their lives in order to make sure that the citizens of their
community stay protected. The “us versus them” attitude of many
police officers today is very harmful to the principles of freedom and
liberty.

In the above-mentioned story, it was the judiciary branch of the
Indiana State government that was unwilling to hold the executive
branch of the Indiana State government accountable to the principles
of liberty and constitutional government. Once again, we see that
government cannot be trusted to police itself.

If the State of Indiana had constitutionalist sheriffs (and surely
there must be a few of them), they would have immediately renounced
the ISC decision, and made it clear that they would never allow their
deputies to operate in the tyrannical manner approved by the court’s
dastardly decision. The same should have been true for Indiana’s
police chiefs. Was there such a response? If there was, the media
ignored it.

Furthermore, Indiana’s governor should have immediately renounced
the ISC’s decision and issued an executive order forbidding State
and local law enforcement personnel from complying with this
unconstitutional decision. Again, if he did this, we didn’t hear
about it, did we?

The propensity of government is not only to build and strengthen
itself, but also to protect itself. This is true at every level of
government. It is up to “We the People” to hold our civil
magistrates accountable to constitutional government. And this is most
efficiently done at the State level.

The citizens of Indiana can put a stop to this nonsense if they are
of a mind to do so. They should rise as one in opposition to the
court’s opinion; they should rise as one in demanding the
resignations of the three justices who affirmed this draconian
decision; they should rise as one in demanding the resignation of
Newton County Sheriff Donald Hartman (and any other sheriff who
expressed similar views); they should rise as one in demanding that
the Indiana governor publicly repudiate this opinion and that he sign
an EO countering it; and they should rise as one in making sure that
every elected official in Indiana knows that the people of the Hoosier
State will not sit back and allow their liberties to be trampled on in
such an egregious fashion.

As I have said in past columns, liberty will be won or lost at the
State level. All this talk about “saving America” is just that:
talk. If we are serious about protecting and preserving our liberties,
we will work to ensure that our individual State is the vanguard of
freedom--not the instrument of its demise. If we cannot convince our
State and local governments to protect our liberties, we are dreaming
if we think we are going to convince Washington, D.C., to do the same.

The decision of the Indiana Supreme Court and the public statements
of Sheriff Donald Hartman prove that George Washington was spot-on:
government is a “fearful master.”

Freedom-loving Hoosiers need to stand up NOW!

Shariamerica?

FYI

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The Associated Press reports that since traditional incandescent light bulbs will be banned in January, stores will begin selling expensive LED bulbs (up to $50 each), in just a few months. Why should a select few legislators in 2007 be able to tell hundreds of millions of Americans what light bulbs are best for them? Asked Sen. Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.), who introduced the Better Use of Light Bulbs (BULB) Act that would restore Americans freedom to choose the type of light bulbs they want to buy for their homes and businesses. Why do we have a federal government so intent on taking away people's choices and limiting their options? It's time the federal government starts worrying less about what light bulbs people buy and more about how it's going fix the deficit. Please FAX every member of Congress to urge them to vote for Sen. Enzi's BULB Act and its companion bill in the House, H.R. 6411, so that our lives will not have to be run by federal bureaucrats or crazy environmentalists. 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Since Congress in 2007 passed the federal energy law that bans the production of traditional incandescent light bulbs, legislators in South Carolina recently passed a bill that trumps the federal energy standards and will allow manufactures in South Carolina to make and sell traditional incandescent light bulbs, but they can ONLY be manufactured and purchased in South Carolina. If Congress refuses to PASS the BULB Act, then those of us who don't live in the Palmetto state will be FORCED to buy EXPENSIVE $50 LEDs or TOXIC CFLs! CFLs, a light bulb invention that was once believed to be an energy and environmental solution to America's problems, is quickly becoming a more expensive and dangerous alternative that American families cannot afford. The US News and World Report said: Consumers are rightly concerned about the toxic substance mercury that helps CFLs produce light. Energy Star, a division of the EPA, reports that if a CLF is broken inside a home or office, humans must leave the premises for three hours after removing a broken bulb. Sen. Enzi says that the EPA doesn't like the new bulbs because the amount of mercury in one bulb is enough to contaminate up-to 6,000 gallons of water beyond safe drinking levels. Along with that frightening predicament, fluorescent light bulbs also emit minute particles of X-ray and other electromagnetic pollutants, including mercury, that pose potential health risks. Researchers have also determined that CFLs can cause headaches and eye strain, and can hinder productivity for those who are dyslexic or suffer from attention deficit disorders. By barring Americans from buying incandescent light bulbs in favor of CFLs, LEDs and halogen light bulbs, environmentalists said the country would reduce energy consumption by $18 billion a year, or save consumers between $80 and $180 on their electric bills each year. 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According to The Mercury News, The nation's accelerating shift from incandescent bulbs to a new generation of energy-efficient lighting is raising an environmental concern -- the release of tons of mercury every year. CFLs account for a quarter of new bulb sales and each contains up-to five milligrams of mercury, a potent neurotoxin that's on the worst-offending list of environmental contaminants. The Association of Lighting and Mercury Recyclers reports that: Demand for the bulbs is growing as federal and state mandates for energy-efficient lighting takes effect, yet only about two percent of residential consumers and one-third of businesses recycle them. If the recycling rate remains as abysmally low as it is, then there will certainly be more mercury released into the environment, said Paul Abernathy, executive director of the Napa-based recycling association. Until the public really has some kind of convenient way to take them back, it's going to be an issue. In seven months, your traditional light bulbs will be banned from store shelves! Democrats in Congress have mandated that you must give up using traditional light bulbs all because environmentalists believed that traditional light bulbs caused global warming. (Even though scientists today are telling us we are entering into a solar cooling phase that will decrease the average temperatures on Earth during the next 30- to 80-years.) As we suffer through 9 percent unemployment, this is no time to force Americans to purchase expensive LEDs, at $50 each, which can cost consumers a minimum of $500 to $2,250 three times a year, just to maintain light in their homes. From the health insurance you're allowed to have, to the car you can drive, to the light bulbs you can buy, Washington is making too many decisions that are better left to people who work for their own paychecks and earn their own living, said Rep. Barton (R-Texas). Tell Congress to vote FOR the BULB ACT, because it will save jobs, save money, and give Americans the FREEDOM to purchase the light bulbs they want. Please FAX every member of Congress to urge them to vote for Sen. Enzi's BULB Act and its companion bill in the House, H.R. 6411, so our lives do not have to be run by federal bureaucrats or environmentalists. We must ACT NOW to save our free enterprise system from the green energy advocates who believe Americans should pay $50 a light bulb for expensive LEDs or risk toxic exposure from harmful CFLs. Please include a DONATION to the Center for the Defense of Free Enterprise Action Fund, so we can continue to alert Americans about politicians' schemes to dismantle the U.S. free enterprise system. In seven months, you will be required to purchase expensive LEDs at $50 each, or buy harmful CFLs that emits toxic mercury vapors. Case in point: Brandy Bridges, a resident of Ellsworth, Maine, dropped and shattered a CFL on the carpeted floor of her daughter's bedroom and wound up paying $2,000 to clean up the toxic mercury residue. Having known that CFLs are potentially hazardous, Bridges called her local Home Depot to ask for advice, and was told that since CFLs contain mercury, she should contact the Poison Control hotline. The hotline told Bridges to contact Maine's Department of Environmental Protection. The DEP sent Andrew Smith, a toxicologist, to her home to seal-off her daughter's bedroom with plastic. Smith then told Bridges that the fee to clean up the toxic mercury from the $3 CFL was $2,000. The level of mercury toxicity in Bridges' downstairs living area was safely under 300 mg/m3. However, the mercury level spiked to 1,939 mg/m3 in her daughter's bedroom. Bridges, a single mom with limited financial means, filed a claim with her homeowner's policy. The insurance company denied her claim because mercury is a pollutant that wasn't covered in her policy. Smith said he believed the contamination was localized at the spot where the bulb broke, adding that mercury is dangerous to anyone who has experienced long-term exposure to the chemical element. Now remember, the above scenario is about CFLs, the replacement to the traditional incandescent light bulb that you've used your entire life, and that will be banned from store shelves in seven months. As the world listened to eco-alarmist Al Gore's rant about traditional light bulbs being one of the sources of global warming, General Electric was applying to the U.S. Department of Energy (on Dec. 15, 1997), for an advanced waiver of domestic and foreign invention rights on CFLs under DOE Contract No. DE-FC36-97G010236, waiver W (A)-07-024, CN-0929. If Thomas Edison had been watching the stealth movement by environmentalists to ban incandescent light bulbs in favor of CFLs worldwide, he would have been doing angry cartwheels in his grave. We must ACT NOW to urge members of Congress to REPEAL the 2007 green energy benchmark that would require every American to buy expensive $50 LEDs and toxic CFLs…as safe Tom Edison light bulbs are outlawed. Most Republican Senators support Sen. Enzi's BULB Act that has 27 Republican co-sponsors. Many Democrats were cajoled into believing that the 2007 bill will eliminate many greenhouse gasses and be less harmful to the environment. However, the new LED light bulbs will cost roughly SIX TIMES the cost of the light bulbs we now use, and the toxic CFLs almost require a hazmat team to change them. Sen. Enzi said: If left alone, the best bulb will win its rightful standing in the marketplace. What a revolutionary concept. Free enterprise! Please FAX every member of Congress to urge them to vote for the BULB Act and H.R. 6411, so our lives do not have to be run by federal bureaucrats or environmentalists. We must ACT NOW to save our free enterprise system from the green energy advocates who believe Americans should pay $50 a light bulb for expensive LEDs or risk toxic exposure from harmful CFLs. Please include a DONATION to the Center for the Defense of Free Enterprise Action Fund, so we can continue to alert Americans about politicians' schemes to dismantle the U.S. free enterprise system. How many politicians does it take to change a light bulb? It takes 218 in the House and 51 in the Senate.Help put an end to governmental interference in our lives! And, help put an end to Mr. Obama's interference with the Free Enterprise system! Join thousands of your fellow Americans and send faxes to every member of Congress to tell them to vote for the BULB Act! Your financial assistance to CDFE Action Fund is urgently needed now so that together we can urge members of Congress support and vote for the BULB Act. Sincerely, Ron Arnold Center for the Defense of Free Enterprise Action Fund www.cdfe.org/cdfe-action-fund P. S. Together we can urge members of Congress to pass the BULB Act that will give Americans the freedom to buy any light bulb they choose - traditional incandescent, toxic CFLs or expensive LEDs that will cost $50 each. CLICK HERE to FAX Congress to urge your representatives to vote for the BULB Act and H.R. 6411. If the BULB Act fails, then every American will be forced to buy toxic CFLs or expensive LEDs---YOU WON'T HAVE A CHOICE! Or SEND your donation to: Center for the Defense of Free Enterprise Action Fund Dept Code - 6236 12500 NE 10th Place Bellevue, WA 98005 The Center for the Defense of Free Enterprise Action Fund is a non-partisan education and advocacy organization that lobbies to influence legislation and mobilizes grassroots support for legislation that defends free enterprise. Contributions to the Action Fund are not tax deductible.

Scripture For the Day

Ephesians 6:11-18

Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high [places].

Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;

And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:

Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

Did we in our own strength confide, Our striving would be losing;
Were not the right Man on our side, The Man of God's own choosing:

Dost ask who that may be? Christ Jesus, it is He;
Lord Sabaoth, His name, From age to age the same,
And He must win the battle. (Excerpt from Martin Luther's hymn, A Mighty Fortresss Is Our God)

Baby Goats

Last night both of Gabriel's goats, Tripod and Butterscotch, had kids. And they both had twins. They are very cute. At least for now they are.

The 1st from left and the 3rd from left are Butterscotch's babies. They are darker than Tripod's.

Butterscotch and her babies.

Tripod and her babies.

Gabriel and Tripod's babies.
Boaz is petting Butterscotch's buckling.
Elise and Gabriel milking Butterscotch. This is Butterscotch's first time kidding, so this is the first milking.
Tripod's buckling.
And again.
Gabriel with Butterscotch's buckling.