It's All About The Benjamin

Happy 300th birthday to the inimitable Ben Franklin. Seriously, if there ever was something like a real-life superhero, he was it. We should all take a few moments today to learn more about the man and his accomplishments. Here is one important thing he said:

Any society that would give up a little liberty to gain a little security will deserve neither and lose both.

In commemoration of this particular and timely quote, I highly recommend you check out the text of Al Gore's rip-roaring speech on the necessity of investigating the recent NSA activities and balancing government powers. Given on the date celebrating Martin Luther King, Jr., Gore's speech also elegantly references the FBI spying and plotting conducted against the great man. Even better, it led up to the lawsuit filed by the ACLU and the Center for Constitutional Rights against the Bush administration today.

May the spirit of Ben watch over us... and maybe kick some ass!