You mean that was a serious article? | Modesto Bee

Regarding "Don't know about creep toward martial law? No wonder" (Jan. 17, Page B-7): I kept waiting for the punch line. Surely, this was satire. However, it appears that author John Young is serious, and for the editors to even print the thing suggests to me that they lean at least a little in the same direction.

Suspend habeas corpus? Abe Lincoln did it first; President Bush has never done it. Martial law? LBJ did it 40 years ago; Bush has never done it. Any president could do these things if necessary. But it's obviously not necessary now, so it isn't being done.

I don't have space to shoot down the rest of these "facts." It wouldn't be too hard. Bottom line: If we were living in the fascist Republican police state I keep hearing about, these nutcases would already be in jail instead of congratulating themselves for bravely standing up to the Bushitlerburton conspiracy.

Give me a break.

STEVE WALLACE

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