Congressman Sam Farr was not among them. Unlike many of his colleagues, Representative Farr took a strong stand against the renewal of the most clearly unconstitutional provisions of the Patriot Act. Farr explained,

“I felt compelled to vote against extending the three expiring provisions of the Patriot Act that continue to give the government sweeping authority to spy on individuals inside the United States and, in some cases, without any suspicion of wrongdoing. These intrusive and sweeping powers stand in stark contrast to the fundamental individual privacy rights enshrined in the Fourth Amendment of our Constitution. All three surveillance provisions are unnecessary, they do not protect us against terrorism, and they should have been allowed to expire long ago. I am appalled by the blatant disregard for the civil liberties of innocent Americans who have absolutely no connection to the global war on terrorism, and I look forward to a time when these provisions are no longer the law of the land.”

You can stand with Sam Farr in his opposition to the Patriot Act. At noon tomorrow, March 12, 2011, Americans will gather in protest against the Patriot Act outside the U.S. Capitol. You can join them. For more day to day, simple activism, if you live in Washington D.C. or in the 17th congressional district of California, where Sam Farr comes from, you can place this bumper sticker on your car, with the simple message: I support Sam Farr.

Jackson Lee explained her vote by recalling the difficult early years of the United States of America. She reminded her colleagues that, although the early U.S.A. was besieged by European powers intent on ruining the new nation, the founders did not allow their fears to interfere with the growth of liberty. The early Americans stood firm in support of the Fourth Amendment’s protection from unreasonable search and seizure in a way that many Americans today are reluctant to emulate.

Jackson Lee declared:

“To win the war on terror, the United States must remain true to the founding architects of this democracy who created a Constitution which enshrined an inalienable set of rights. These Bills Of Rights guarantee certain fundamental freedoms that cannot be limited by the government. One of these freedoms, the Fourth Amendment, is the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures. We do not circumvent the Fourth Amendment, or any other provision in the United States Constitution, merely because it is inconvenient.

As an American citizen, the security and safety of my constituency is pinnacle, but I will never stand for legislation that infringes on the basic rights afforded in our Constitution. When our founding fathers drafted the constitution, after living under an oppressive regime in Britain, they ensured that the American people would never experience such subjugation. Where are the protective measures for our citizens in the Patriot Act? Why are the measures addressed in the last Congress not included in the bill?

Instead of reauthorizing these provisions, Congress should conduct robust, public oversight of all surveillance tools and craft reforms that will better protect private communications from overbroad government surveillance.”

In these times when phantom fears are provoking many politicians in Washington D.C. to rush to sacrifice our constitutional freedoms for a thin semblance of security, we need more leaders like Sheila Jackson Lee who remember what true American courage looks like. Courage means that, even if there are dangers out there in the world, we keep hold of our freedoms.

If you’re a resident of the 18th congressional district in Texas, display your support to Representative Jackson Lee. Put this bumper sticker on your car to show that when Sheila Jackson speaks in support of liberty in the Constitution, she speaks for you.

If you live further to the east, consider making your way to Washington D.C. this Saturday to show some leadership yourself. This Saturday, March 12, 2011 at noon, there will be a protest against the Patriot Act outside the U.S. Capitol Building.

Some people think that’s a problem. Me, I think it’s great that we in the USA have the freedom to come to our own conclusions about religion. We don’t have religion crammed down our throats, like people have in too many other other countries.

Sadly, new U.S. Representative Billy Long doesn’t see things that way. Congressman Long has declared that he thinks that our government ought to have the power to force us into religious worship.

We don’t have freedom from religion, he says, even when our personal morals disagree with the religion that Long’s big government would choose for us.

That’s not the kind of leadership we need in Congress. It would be wrong to re-elect Billy Long.

To have an International Blasphemy Day would seem oxymoronic, since blaspheming is an act of individual rebellion against a religious system that insists there can be no violation of its self-interested thought barriers. Blasphemy shouldn’t be an organized activity — it should be without limits, not restricted to One Official Day.

But this is a different day. It’s International Blasphemy Rights Day. And when there are tens of thousands of religious bodies in the United States — and millions of religious organizations around the world — dedicated to imposing their religious strictures on everyone else, all to prevent people from questioning the veracity of their often quite wacky suppositions, then by gum there needs to be some organization to push back a little bit, and in order to do it right some organization is called for. This is organization to defend my right, your right, all our rights to believe what we believe and to say out loud what we don’t believe.

You have a right to blasphemy. And if you believe that you have the right, you need to stand up for it.

This video asks the bumper sticker designer that question, and also – “Do you really hate Islam?”

Allen West, the Republican Party nominee for Congress in Florida’s 22nd District, has made a speech publicly railing against the idea of coexistence:

As I was driving up here today, I saw that bumper sticker that absolutely incenses me. It’s not the Obama bumper sticker. But it’s the bumper sticker that says, ‘CoExist,’ and it has all the little religious symbols on it. And the reason why I get upset, and every time I see one of those bumper stickers, I look at the person inside that is driving. Because that person represents something that would give away our country. Would give away who we are, our rights and freedoms and liberties because they are afraid to stand up and confront that which is the antithesis, anathema of who we are. The liberties that we want to enjoy.

Watch the video of these remarks and you’ll see that Allen West makes these comments without the slightest sense of irony, which is quite sad. The “rights and freedoms and liberties” that are the foundation of American society are found in the Constitution. The very first freedoms are written in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which reads:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

In other words, Government shall not be used as a cudgel for one group to dominate another, for one belief to suppress another, for one religion to eliminate another. The central idea of the U.S. Constitution, which is the Supreme Law of our Land (Article VI), is CoExistence of different people, of different religions, of different expressions, of different ideas.

The GOP’s new nominee Allen West stands against CoExistence.

Allen West stands against the idea of America.

If you are for the American value of coexistence, be against the election of Allen West this November.

If you support Free Speech, let the mosque be. You don’t have to like it. You don’t have to approve of it. In fact, it’s not your job to approve the mosque or not. It’s your job and my job as American citizens to support one another’s freedom.

Just let the mosque be. Is that too much to ask?

If your answer is “yes,” then I’d like to gently suggest that you have a fundamental problem with the idea of America.

If they want to practice a form of religion that’s out of touch with the present day world, that’s their business. Unfortunately, the right wing Christian activists can never leave it at that. They’ve got to go around telling everyone else what to do.

As far as these religious zealots are concerned, there’s only one right way to do things: Their way, as defined by the rules made by shepherds thousands of years ago. It’s time to tell the Religious Right, loud and clear, Get Your Bible Off My Body!

If you oppose the Patriot Act, don’t vote for Martha Coakley.

Well, the national emergency has come and gone, but the Patriot Act remains. It was renewed, in spite of previous promises, in 2005, and now, in 2009, it’s the Senate Democrats who are leading the charge to renew the Patriot Act. They’re trying to pass S. 1692, a bill to put off the sunset yet again.

Like the original Patriot Act, S. 1692 fails to protect Americans’ constitutional rights. Good senators like Russ Feingold and Dick Durbin supported an amendment that would have at least guaranteed that the Patriot Act’s worst powers would only be used in cases of suspected terrorism or foreign spying, but their amendment was dismissed. Worse yet, it was other Democrats who made up the deciding votes to kill the reform. The following Democrats voted no to reforming the Patriot Act:

Senator Patrick Leahy
Senator Dianne Feinstein
Senator Al Franken
Senator Charles Schumer
Senator Sheldon Whitehouse
Senator Amy Klobuchar
Senator Ted Kaufman
Herb Kohl

It’s time to talk back to these Democratic leaders. They were elected to take a stand against the abuses of the Bush era, not to extend them! This bumper sticker gives a direct message about what’s at stake: Patriots Against the Patriot Act

This video contains more explanation of the problems with the new Patriot Act extension: