More on Rand Paul

Dr. Rand Paul, following his victory in the Kentucky primary election on Tuesday, is now the Republican candidate for election to the United States Senate in November.

Among Dr. Paul's less acceptable ideas include his apparent belief that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1992 represent gross intrusions by the Federal Government into matters that are properly the responsibilities of the States. He also seems to believe that the right of free association, as guaranteed to citizens by the First Amendment, allows businesses to exclude or otherwise discriminate against those that they do not like - for any reason or none. For more detail, see this article from the May 20th edition of the Washington Monthly: http://tinyurl.com/2dchh29

A citizen does indeed have the right to associate with, to avoid, or to dislike anyone, for any reason, whether good or bad. Notwithstanding the Supreme Court's recent curious decision in the matter Citizens United vs. Federal Election Commission, that right to discriminate or avoid applies to individuals, and does not, nor should it, apply to corporations and businesses or to individuals acting as agents and employees of those businesses.

Notwithstanding the provisions of the Fourteenth Amendment, ratified on July 9, 1868, which guarantees equal protection under the law, none of the former Confederate States, prior to 1964 and the passage of the Civil Rights Act, had any intention of changing the invidious and hateful 'Jim Crow' laws that enabled - and frequently mandated - discrimination and segregation. There was, therefore, no alternative to Federal action. Similarly, when it comes to treating disabled people properly and fairly (full disclosure - your correspondent is a double leg amputee), there are times when only government action can force businesses to do what is both morally right and, as it happens, good business.

Before Dr. Paul again expresses his views on these matters, he would be well advised to read the Declaration of Independence which, while not a legal document by which we are governed, well describes America's ideals and aspirations:

"We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness..."

What more need be said?