A "Victory," or "Further Government Intrusion into Our Thoughts?"

To follow up on the excellent comments you folks made here on "hate crimes," here are some quotes from the D.A. whose staff prosecuted the transgender case I wrote about. Ken Buck says he was intitially skeptical about the use of the "bias-motivated crimes statute," but came to realize that the actions of the perpetrators in these crimes, while "imposing violence on an individual," actually intended to target an entire group (or "community") of people. In this case the perpetrator said in a recorded phone call, "all gay things must die." "Bias motivated crimes have a chilling effect" on select groups of people, according to Buck, because they spread terror to all members of the community who identify themselves as members of the group.

By the way, Mr. Buck announced yesterday that he is running for the U.S.Senate as a Republican. Democratic Governor Bill Ritter appointed Michael Bennet to replace Ken Salazar, who joined the Obama cabinet as Secretary of the Interior, but Bennet has to run for election in 2010.

Here is another twist on this subject. Criminal defense attorney Robert Corry Jr. writes in the April 28 Denver Post that "adding 12 years to a life without parole sentence because of thoughts running through a defendant's head cannot be a "victory," as the Denver Post described it in an editorial. Corry writes, "The politically correct categories that politicians have carved out for imprisonment - i.e., "race, color, ancestry, religion, national origin, physical or mental disability, or sexual orientation" - beg the question as to why crimes motivated by any other irrational category, such as political affiliation, are not similarly deserving of extra cage time. The "hate crime" law does not apply equally, instead criminalizing only politically incorrect thoughts directed against politically incorrect victim categories. Both major political parties are equally culpable in this radical extension of government's intrusion into our thoughts. Law-and-order Republican prosecutors pay lip service to "limited government" when convenient, yet bring thought crimes charges when TV cameras roll. Elected politicians, always questing for higher office, cannot be trusted to sort out which of our thoughts are unacceptable."

Are you listening Mr. Buck? And, what do the rest of you think?