I most likely will get toasted for this, but here goes:

[Not at all!]

I notice tons of fear and loathing, and this feeling of 1984 is upon us, etc.

[Indeed yes!]

I seriously wonder who is trying to create a repressive government. Clinton cannot pass a simple crime bill, much less become Big Brother. Congress has to do tons of head butting to vote for a pay raise, much less turn the US into a totaliarian society.

[Does 'the death of a thousand cuts' come to mind?]

I DO agree on one thing. If there is something st00pid proposed, like Clipper, etc., then people have all rights to toast the puppy, but I don't think we have an Outer Circle/Inner Circle just yet.

(From a lowly prole,)

Certainly NOT a flame, but I guess I see it differently... the 'simple' crime bill is not simple..quite the contrary, it is a complex piece of legislation! Quite aside from the AW provision, there are big reasons to question it. For example, I just learned that the bill only pays for 25,000 police officers; the other 75,000 officers are *_mandated_* expenditures for local governments. However, if the funding is NOT used for police officers, then the funds don't impose a mandate! Going to guns; originally, they wanted to limit magazine capacity to 5 rounds; they compromised to 10. It is a slow grinding away of rights. May I quote Lenin? "Probe as with a knife. Press forward when you feel flesh, withdraw when you touch bone." Apologies to Lenin, since I don't happen to have his books at hand! :-) I suspect part of the problem is a steady increase in regulations. Not so long ago, you could buy a firearm through the mail..not any more. Waitresses weren't targeted by the IRS for failure to report tip income... they are now. Scanners weren't at risk of being banned; clipper wasn't even imagined; warrants were required for searches (they aren't in public housing, now)...I think I perceive a trend! As for inner & outer circles...well, I suspect that the folks who donate $10,000 per year get a *_tad_* more respect than I do!! Regards, Dave