Words Poorly Used #53 — Law

There are many phrases built with the word “law” in them to create an impression that we are in the soft and warm embrace of a creature for humane conduct.  I’m talking about phrases such as “the rule of law” which means essentially whatever catch-22 the prosecutors plan to pursue.  On Friday’s Scott Horton Show, “Charlotte Silver, an independent journalist based in Oakland, California, discusses the prosecution of Chicago resident Rasmea Odeh for immigration violations, based on her conviction on terrorism charges in Israel in 1969 after she was brutally tortured into confessing.”  Now the prosecution, even though seeking to imprison Ms. Odeh based on a claim that she falsified her immigration documents by omitting the charges from Israel, has convinced the judge that whether Ms. Odeh told the truth in completing those documents is prejudicial to their case — so the government’s case is above the defendant’s right to testify on the facts.  Law is too often held in this country to be just greasing the skids for the state.

Kilgore Forelle

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