Law And Order Vs. Freedom

It's the same old argument that's being played out in many cities across this nation right now. -- is "law and order" more important than "freedom and free speech"? This last weekend the riot police moved in to break up the Occupy Wall Street demonstrators in several cities, such as Philadelphia, Salt Lake City, Oakland, Portland, Denver, and others. They are clearing parks and arresting protesters -- violently if they have to, and they are doing it in the name of "law and order".

The cry for "law and order" has always been the catch-phrase used by the powerful when their authority is questioned. It has been used by dictatorships throughout history to justify their using violence to hang on to power. And it is now being used by the 1% to stop those who would institute change in this country.

There are many in this country who believe that the United States is a place where freedom and free speech trump law and order. After all, we have a Constitution that guarantees the right of the people to speak freely and to peaceably assemble to redress the government for grievances. I wish that was true, but it has always been an illusion -- more propaganda than reality. Free speech in this country is allowed only when that speech coincides with what those in power want to hear.

A perfect example is the demonstrations by the teabaggers. They were not met with riot police and beaten or arrested because they were speaking out for policies that those in power, the 1%, liked -- policies that would let them continue to control the government and continue to amass an ever greater portion of the nation's wealth and income. But the Occupy Wall Street demonstrators were different, although just as peaceable. They were protesting for a change in power and for economic justice -- things the 1% did not want and will not allow. So the riot police have been turned loose on them. In their case, free speech and other constitutional rights must be subordinated to the "need" for law and order.

This is not new. It's the way this country has always reacted when it's citizens demanded change that scared those in power. There are many examples -- the violence unleashed was unleashed against those demonstrating for civil rights, for an end to the Vietnam War, for the right to strike and collectively bargain, for decent wages and conditions for farmworkers, for Native Americans to control their own destiny and land, and for many other things. The history of this nation has been a long battle between those wanting freedom and those trying to impose law and order to protect their power.

The rich and powerful have never given up anything willingly. They have always unleashed violence upon those wanting change. All these recent events have done is to remind us that nothing has changed. Our constitutional rights are respected only when the people stand together and demand it. When that doesn't happen, they are trampled upon by those in power.

The Occupy Wall Street movement is entering a crises time. They have been successful enough to scare those who control the government and the economy.Now those people are using the police to strike back. This is the time for people to stand up and demand that our constitutional rights be respected. If not, the movement will die, and the 1% will pop the champagne corks and celebrate another victory -- and we will be another step down the road to a full-fledged police state.