I think your point about 1920's Germany is very thought-provoking. It is a lesson in avoiding overreactions. I remember well that many of us were alarmed during the 1960's and early 1970's by the acts of the SDS, the Weathermen, the Black Panthers and many other militant left wing groups. At that time, the hippie culture referred to the police, the FBI, and the President as "Nazis" and equivalents of today's overused "jack-booted thugs" (they may have used those exact words--I just don't remember). Agreeing with this view, the liberal "Warren Court" broadly expanded 4th Amendment search and seizure protections, Miranda "rights", state-paid defense counsel rights, free speech rights, etc. And I know from first hand experience how hard the conservative right worked to undo these "liberal" rulings. Well, with the establishment of the Rehnquist Court (judges appointed by Nixon/Reagan/Bush), they've pretty much dismantled the Warren Court "shackles" on law enforcement.
But guess what? In the meantime, law enforcement shifted who they were focusing on, and now run amok in some areas. The hard right is now howling about "Nazis" and "jack-booted thugs". But they refuse to realize that they are just reaping what they sowed through their overreaction to the Warren Court rulings. |
