Know your rights

I work for a small newspaper company as a reporter, and there's a large-ish suburban city nearby that's part of my beat. As a part of my job, I go to their City Council meetings, and that's where I was last night.

Now, last night's meeting was a little different because they were reorganizing the council, which is to say that they chose who would be the new Mayor and Mayor Pro-Tem, largely ceremonial positions.

The problem is that politics have gotten kind of nasty there over the last few years, so even choosing who gets a ceremonial role on the council has become a big freakin' to do.

One of the council members is under investigation by the Los Angeles County District Attorney's office because he allegedly got a sweetheart deal on an SUV from a dealership owner and developer who had business with the City. The investigation has been dragging on forever, and the DA hasn't filed charges against the guy so far, but the head of the division that investigates corruption insists that it's an ongoing investigation.

As a result of all of this, the council member has been passed over for Mayor Pro-Tem, and last night it looked like he would be passed over for Mayor as well.

Well, this didn't sit to well with his supporters, many of whom came out last night to give the council a piece of their mind. For two hours. They said that the situation smacked of discrimination. One of them brought up "social justice." Etc.

But here's the kicker. A bunch of these people kept getting up at the mic and talking about how, in this country, we have the right to be considered innocent until proven guilty. Over and over and over again, innocent until proven guilty. It made me want to scream.

You are presumed innocent until you're proven guilty...in a criminal trial. This constitutional right does not extend to a procedural vote at a City Council meeting.

I'm sure the same sort of thing happens all over the country on a regular basis, since people seem to be staggeringly ignorant about their constitutional rights. Country music radio stations stop playing the Dixie Chicks? Why, that's censorship! This guy doesn't get to be Mayor? You've presumed him guilty before he's even been charged with anything! It's un-American!

Oh, and by the way, injustice prevailed and the guy got passed over again. Democracy is dead, if you're judging things by the size of the mob that came out to demand that they elect him to lead the city.

I weep for our Republic.