I have been traveling overseas for some time now—ever since the “questionable” election of George W. Bush. When people learn that I'm an American, which still receives a celebrity-hood status just about anywhere, they often ask “why have your people changed so much?” "I wish I knew," I'll reply. "Should you not go home now and try to change things?" (This they ask once they learn that I was once, like Bill Douglas, a hardnosed patriot.) "I cannot," I reply. "I no longer have the stomach for it."

It's the saddest of truths when the people of my country have given up on the freedoms hard fought by so many Americans for so long. I think that the recent clamping-down of civil liberties is beyond outrage, no matter what your political affiliation (if you have one) might be. What saddens me most though is that never have I been concerned about speaking my mind. America has always protected the First Amendment like a mama bear to its cub. I can’t say that anymore. In fact, I’m more than a little concerned that by using my real name on this letter, it might be used against me at some future time.

This makes me want to cry.