An interesting BLOG piece with which I agree so much I am copying it here with my comments.
http://babelogue.citypages.com:8080/ecassel/
Fri, Apr 18, 2003; by Elaine Cassel.
Civil liberties, first coined as a term in the mid-17th century, refers to individual rights as against the power of the government. In its strictest sense, it refers to liberties to be free in our bodies, our homes, our minds, our churches, our travel, our associations. These most elemental of freedoms, along with rights of the people in the face of government power, were granted to Americans in the Bill of Rights.
In Canada, we had to wait until John Diefenbaker pronounced a declaration of rights during his term as Prime Minister (1957 to 1963) and before there were teeth to the rights, it had to become the Charter attached to the Canadian Constitution when it was patriated in 1982.
The Bill of Rights came about primarily through the efforts of George Mason, Virginia’s delegate to the constitutional convention of 1787. Having crafted a Bill of Rights for the Virginia constitution, Mason was distressed that the framers of the federal constitution made no such provision. The Articles of Confederation, he pointed out, were all about federal power, leaving open the opportunity for centralized tyranny, a sore matter to the former subjects of King George III.
Though Mason left the convention in protest, the First Congress of the United States adopted the first ten amendments to the Constitution, which came to be known as the Bill of Rights, on September 25, 1789. The most significant are freedoms of speech, press, assembly, worship, due process, trial by jury, and right to counsel. Over 225-plus years, judicial decisions and laws have defined the extent of these freedoms--such as when a jury trial is required, and what the limitations are to be on free speech and assembly.
"They hate us for our freedoms," said President Bush on September 20, 2001, referring to the motivation for the September 11 terrorist attacks. The freedoms Bush was referring to are those embodied in the Bill of Rights. Ironically, the "war on terror" that Bush declared that day is being waged not just against "evil," "rogue states," and "threats to national security," but against the very liberties for which we are supposedly despised.
The war on terror has gripped many countries and freedoms once enjoyed have been taken away in the name of security. I recently visited the Philippines where I was frisked by wand and hand even to enter the hotel every time I wanted to go to my room or when I wanted to go to the shopping mall, again I had to be frisked - separate line for men and women.
If "they" indeed hate us for our freedoms, "they" have far less to hate us for today. Join me as we follow the war on civil liberties and watch the government rewrite our bill of rights.
Send comments, questions, and items of interest to me at ecassel1@cox.net.
Elaine Cassel
Elaine - well stated! As an observer from outside the US (who has visited 37 of the US states, I feel the Patriot Act and such do exactly as you say - take away the rights and freedoms of the individual.
My endorsement of what Elaine has written is complete and my comments are additions to her excellent writing. You can contact me at dj@torweb.com.
The Philippine Portion of My Trip
In the Philippines, I did not take any pictures in Manila. Manila is like most other large cities. However, there is a very strong security there. When the taxi arrived at the Hotel, there was a barrier before driving into the driveway and I saw two men surrounding the car, one with something he kept looking down at. I found out later, it was a huge mirror on wheels. Then before we could get through the door of the hotel, we were completely patted down (and I mean completely) and our bags were wanded. There was NO store; no place I could go there where I did not get patted down before I could get in (and every time at the Hotel). They do have a separate line for females and one for males but it was more intimate than I appreciated.
I only spent two days in Manila anyways and one of them seemed to be spent trying to get arrangements made to get to Puerto Princesa. Holy week was starting and many people in the Philippines celebrate Holy Week with holidays and there are many special events but the planes going to Puerto Princesa (the Island of Palawan) were booked. Finally took Business class (and that was my first experience of that) but it was much cheaper there than it would be most other places in the world. On Sunday morning then, flew to Puerto Princesa and took a Tricycle to what used to be the place to get the bus but they had started to use a different place in the past week so he took us there, where we transferred to a Jeepney.
I sat on the Jeepney for several hours and at one point he started out, drove into the business district, stopped several places and loaded up with containers of motor fuel, tires, and other stuff, which took three or four men to put on the roof. Meanwhile I was suffocating in heat, squeezed into a spot with luggage on my lap, unable to even shift enough to get a different position for my derriere.
Finally, went back to the bus depot to load up with even more people – some on the roof, some standing wherever they could get a square foot of space. The guidebook had warned me about the bumpy road but I had been told it had been paved. NOT at all. Here I was headed out of a community, which was primitive to nowhere – Sabang is not even on the map.
It was worth it. We arrived. It was still light and of course I was parched and hungry as there was no food or drink on the jeepney (did take a bottle of water on return trip), covered with sweat and dust. We walked about a mile to find a small resort of cottages and was I shocked – the view was absolutely gorgeous BUT the facilities were not western standard at all. I decided I would get cleaned off in the ocean which is what I did but then one has to use the cold water shower to get the salt off. And if one uses the shower, the toilet and floor around the toilet are wet wet wet and …. You get the story but you will see pictures of our primitive cabin, which was quite comfortable. I had never slept with Mosquito netting tucked in around me – as you see the bed had mosquito netting provided. However, aside from the single sheet over the mattress, there was no towel (used our clothes) or upper sheet, etc
The irony. The hotel in Manila was the highest class hotel I stayed in all trip and the business class on the airplane ended up with the lowest class transport and accommodation the whole trip – all in one day!
The local architecture was called Nipa huts or Bahay Kubo in Tagalog. These huts were made of bamboo and woven palm walls with thatched roves. The floors were raised off the ground and made of bamboo for ventilation.
The local vegetation consisted of many recognizable plants including coconuts, bamboo, banana trees and hemp. The hemp plants used for making rope look almost identical to banana plants except they are not as large in diameter.
The drive to Sabang took just over three hours (plus of course the wait in Puerto Princesa of almost two hours). The open-air atmosphere and ocean view was incredible! This sleepy little village resort is right off a picture postcard. If there ever was a small remote island getaway complete with grass hut for rent, this is it. The light green ocean waters greeted the blue expanse of the sky at the horizon. The waves were calm, the breeze, cool.
Day two in Sabang was wonderful although water is an ever-present problem. With temperatures in the high 30s, low 40s and high humidity, one sweats out the water and thirst soon takes over. We walked into Sabang where we took a boat to the underground river. The underground river is referenced on the net so I will not write here about it. You may find details, although not an official site at www.pcij.org/imag/Environment/village.html
From Sabang we took an outrigger boat ride to the underground river. Bangka boats as they are called in Tagalog are also referred to as pump boats. This was an interesting ride. As we entered the boat by means of a small ladder, a native boy was busy bailing buckets of water out of the boat. Be prepared to take your shoes off or get them wet when getting in. The rocks on the bottom are horribly slippery and uneven for bare feet but unless you have some form of water shoe, it is the only way to get into these boats. You might note from the pictures how shallow and rocky the bottom is. The driver paddled the craft out past the breakwater before firing up the boat's pull-start one-cylinder engine. The engine was surprisingly noisy and one is always unsure whether it will keep going. The ride took about 30 minutes.
We arrived at a beach even more picturesque than that of one we had just recently departed. Just off the beach under a canopy of palm trees was a picnic area. Here, monkeys ran wild all over the place looking for scraps tossed out by visitors. We were warned that these creatures get mischievous at times and snatch hats or loose objects from visitors and take them up into the trees. We saw no such behaviour while we were there. There was also a pair of large Lizards knows as Bayawak. These lizard were a good 3-4 feet in length and seemingly oblivious to the presence of humans.
It was a short walk from the beach to the river cave. Once there, we waited for a guide boat to take us into the cavern.
More monkeys running around on the ground and in the trees entertained us.
The guide boats are traditional dugout outrigger canoes with the addition of a large car battery, which powered a spotlight. Arnold sat in front of the boat and took charge of the spotlight. The guide powered the boat with only a single paddle. Once we entered the darkness of the cave the spotlight was our only source of illumination. The guide manoeuvred the craft seemingly independent of the light as if he knew the course blindfolded. Every once in a while he switched on a portable flashlight to take a bearing on something and then it was off again. There were a number of bats (supposedly 40,000) in the cave and their shrill ultrasonic radar chirps lent greatly to the eerieness of the moment. There was also some type of bird in the cavern we assumed to be some form of swallow. It was attracted to our light and dived down on the boat incessantly. It's chirp was a much more audible pitch than that of the bats, but it was similar enough that it must have served the same navigational purpose.
The largest room in the cave was called the cathedral. It had several stalactite formations, which resembled the Virgin Mary, and some of the apostles. The boat turned around in another room where the cave ceiling was 65 meters high. The total distance we traveled into the cave was less than one kilometre. With special permission, boats can go as far as 4 kilometres into the cave. A special boat is also required for this journey because the outrigger canoes are too wide to navigate the narrow passages encountered further inside.
After leaving the cave we returned to the picnic area and then went on another trail known as the "monkey trail". A very rough rickety series of ladders and walkways (including rocks higher than my waist to climb) allowed us access to a colony of Macaca monkeys. This species is indigenous to all of South East Asia. There were many monkeys living and eating in the trees and the elevated trail allowed us to view them at close range. They were accustomed to the presence of humans and took little note of us.
The climb was rather steep and painfully hot, but the scenery was outstanding. This cave and trail was located in a national forest and the forest service had taken a great deal of effort to label all of the vegetation along the trail. We stopped often to rest and take photos so the hike took longer than expected. All in all, it took just about 2 hours. Our Bangka boat crew had been told to meet us at the National Ranger Station and we climbed aboard there for the ride back to Sabang. With a hefty breeze by now and darkening clouds engulfing the peaks, it was evident a storm was on its ways. My shirt, shorts, underwear – all soaked from sweat. I rinsed them out in the cold water and hung them up in the hopes they would dry but by then the jeepney trip had left everything covered with dust and the humidity left everything in my suitcase wet.
In the morning, we packed up after breakfast on the porch and walked back to town. Have you ever tried walking a plank with two suitcases and an over-the shoulder bag? And of course wheeled suitcases are not good in sand and stone. The jeepney ride back to Puerto Princesa was not as tough but I was delighted when it was finished. A tricycle took us to the hotel where we had a late lunch.
The hotel was certainly not North American – built around a wonderful square with open dining room near the front. Shoes were left at the front door. It was more like a motel with the doors of the rooms all facing the square. The dark wood was impressive.
Then some exploring the town by renting a tricycle driver for two hours – he took us way out of town to Christian’s home ( a German man who as an artist settled in Puerto Princesa). Christian has befriended many of the University students and has them up to his house for parties. That is how Arnold, my guide knew him. Christian’s home is on a hill overlooking the city but it along with the three other homes on the hill had burned last year and while he had a beautifully rebuilt place, it was without much of his art work and I am told is considerably smaller than what it had been.
And now on to Hong Kong and Beijing. And it was absolutely wonderful having a guide in Arnold who spoke excellent English and yet who knew how to take me out of the world I knew before.
Should you wish some pictures, or to correspond, please contact me at dj@torweb.com
