Yearning to breathe free

The Statue of Liberty reopens to the public today. Visitors, however, can expect to be screened twice on the way to the base and won't be able to travel up into Lady Liberty's crown. Between this, and the fact that it took nearly three years - almost the entirety of the Bush presidency - to reopen the monument, I hope the symbolism isn't lost on you, gentle reader.

Intimidation is not activism

An article published July 28^th on RollingStone.com leads me to believe that Troy Newman should be added to the list of most dangerous people in America. A rabid anti-abortionist, this article describes how Newman attempts to spread his message via personal harassment of abortion clinic employees and organised boycotts of any business that has anything to do with money which may have passed through an abortion clinic or anyone associated with one. In the first paragraph alone, I spotted at least three actions by Newman and his group, Operation Rescue, which were blatantly criminal in nature.

People such as Newman have a right to their opinions and a right to express said opinions. However, the line is clearly drawn between mere expression and harassment and intimidation. Newman is not an activist, but a bully who wishes to scare people into "repenting" for their so-called "sins" and reshaping the world into his vision. His methods are no different that those of high school cliques, wishing to exclude and humiliate a certain group of people.

Jesus, an advocate of pacifism, compassion and acceptance, would not be impressed.