THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, October 29, 1996 TAG: 9610290003
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A18 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: 27 lines
President Clinton is now pushing for drug testing of all teen-age applicants for driver's licenses. What a great idea. I wish I'd thought of it myself. But why stop there? Why not test all applicants, not just teen-agers?
For that matter, why stop with driver's licenses? Why not go whole hog and test applicants for Social Security cards as well? After all, isn't citizenship a privilege, no less than driving?
Aw, what the heck! let's even institute random, unannounced searches of all homes and businesses! Certainly that would take a major bite out of crime!
Of course, first we'll have to get rid of that pesky Fourth Amendment to our Constitution. You know - the one that guarantees the ``right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures'' by requiring that no one can be searched unless a search warrant has been issued upon the establishment of ``probable cause.''
But that should be no problem. What's a little thing like the Bill of Rights when measured against political pragmatism?
TOM SHARPE
Chesapeake, Oct. 20, 1996 by CNB