Above the Law - Update

Last week I made a post entitled “Above the Law” in which I questioned two very disturbing events. I’m happy to say that the second one – a planned “seatbelt checkpoint” in Tennessee involving police, the U.S. Military, and the Department of Homeland Security – was cancelled after the governor's office was questioned about it:

In response to a number of calls to the Tennessee Governor’s office, the Whiteville, Tennessee police have canceled a planned seat belt checkpoint operation that was to be conducted in conjunction with the Department of Homeland Security and the 251st Military Police in Bolivar, Tennessee.

Keith Sherley of 101.5 FM in Jackson, Tennessee, interviewed Representative Johhny Shaw earlier today. Shaw indicated Governor Phil Bredesen “didn’t need another headache” and canceled the checkpoint. Shaw, who represents the area in Tennessee where the exercise was to be held, admitted the checkpoint was a “bad idea in the first place.” Shaw voiced his opposition to military involvement with local law enforcement. “It would have frightened more people than it helped,” Shaw added. He said he did not think the operation would be rescheduled.

The fact that this was shut down after only a small amount of public scrutiny & questioning strongly implies that it would not have held up to any sort of legal inquiry, nor would whatever justification used for doing it prove to have any merit.

I think it’s also safe to say that the authorities in charge were well aware of that. Why else would they be so quick to pull the plug?

And yet, while it certainly makes me feel better to know that this “operation” was cancelled, the question of why it was planned in the first place is still left completely unanswered.