by George Gordon

In trying to appraise this issue of law enforcement, much has been written and much more will be written. One point that everyone seems to agree on is that crime is out of control, and something must be done about it.

      We call America the land of the free, and refer to the Soviet Union as a police state. But the facts tell us another story: they show that this country holds more people per capita in jail than any other country, including the Soviet Union and South Africa.

      In reality, most people in America live in a police state, and are completely unaware of it. There is little difference between tyranny in governments, no matter where it may be. For example, the people of Poland:

• have national identity cards
• cannot drive without licenses
• cannot work where they choose
• are required to register firearms and cars
• cannot build on their land without government approval
• are compelled to buy insurance
• must show identification papers upon demand
• have a portion of their wages stolen
• are incarcerated without trial or due process
• have ports of entry which compel them to stop, clear and pay duties
• are subject to searches on their highways
• may be arbitrarily taken into custody and fingerprinted without court order

      The list goes on. It makes no difference where you may be located; citizens of any country who are so constrained are not free, but living under tyranny. It matters not whether we think we have it somehow "better" than the Poles. Both systems are tyrannical in nature, the only difference being the degree of tyranny applied and the understanding of the system by the citizens. The Poles understand that they live in tyranny, while Americans have been convinced that it can't happen here, even though it has already come to pass. We recognize tyranny in foreign countries, but in our own, we refer to it as "law and order." But a police state by any other name is still a police state.

      There must be a simple solution; one which will free us from this morass of crime and punishment. Any solution must conform to our Constitution (if we wish to avoid armed revolution), refrain from punishing the innocent, and punish those who are guilty. The current system does nothing but spawn an endless circle of recidivism and contempt for law in general. Our prisons, rather than being rehabilitative, are merely schools, which teach further crime.

      If a victim loses their property, the criminals lose their freedom.