ALLIANCE FOR
CITIZENS RIGHTS 
ALLIANCE FOR
CITIZENS RIGHTS
AN ISSUE OF CONTROL
by Ray Simmons"Congress shall make no law...abridging...the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."
Do you recognize the above quotation? Apparently the officials in Florida do not understand what it is or what it says. It is the final phrase in the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States and it is supposed to guarantee the people the right to protest actions of their government.
An article on the World Net Daily news this morning (10-03-02) tells us that the officials in Dade and Collier counties have thrown up roadblocks of every sort to prevent the issuance of permits for the Sawgrass Rebellion rally planned for October 17-19, 2002.
For those who may not have heard about the Sawgrass Rebellion, which may be most readers since the major media has been virtually silent on the issue, let me quote from the World Net Daily article:
"The Sawgrass Rebellion was conceived as a rallying cry for people across the country who are experiencing the loss of private property and property rights to government programs that seek to expand wilderness, establish wildlife corridors, secure "open space," create urban-growth boundaries, scenic viewsheds and a host of other land-management programs.
"The two primary programs that brought the Sawgrass Rebellion to Florida were the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan and Collier County's Comprehensive Plan Amendments."
Local organizations in south Florida have been working since mid-July to secure the necessary permits. Can you imagine such a lengthy, drawn-out process if the issue was one of civil rights? Perhaps 40 years ago, but then the rally would have gone forward without permits, as this one should. I, though not a resident of Florida, intend to let Governor Jeb Bush hear from me and I pray a few thousand others will do the same.
What is happening in Florida is being planned for your state as well, if it is not already under way. You may not believe it but if you start hearing the terms "smart growth," "master planning," "urban growth boundaries," "greenways," "planning boards," "conservation easements," etc., you had better wake up. Your control over your own property is about to go the way of the dodo bird, some appointed bureaucrat will be telling you how you must cut your lawn and trim your trees...or perhaps that your land has been determined to be within some reclamation area and must be vacated.
Freedom cannot exist without property rights! Capitalism cannot thrive without property rights! Why do you think America has been called on to support the world? Because our freedom to own and utilize property has made us the wealthiest nation this world has ever seen. Without the right to control one’s own property there is little incentive to develop new techniques and new methodology.
The idea of the kind of freedom we have had in this country originated with Founding Fathers who were well grounded in God’s Holy Scriptures. It is there we find God giving land to the people. It is there we find the principles of private property totally unheard of in any other culture. If a family lost its property due to poor management or bad investments it was to be returned to that family during the Year of Jubilee (every fifty years). We have gone far in forgetting God’s word in most of our modern-day culture. It seems we are on the verge of allowing our freedoms to be taken from us as we sit idly by and watch our neighbors have their property rights taken by some faceless bureaucrats who are using environmental scare tactics to justify their thievery. This is not an environmental issue! It is an issue of control!
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