Well, I've read all the posts today and see only two that need any response from me.

First, to Luke...

Although you might like to reduce my position to simplistic nonsense, your notion that I cannot use the preservation of the Bill of Rights and what I happen to feel are simple, pleasant human freedoms as an argument in favor of crucifying this moron is simply absurd.  Nothing in my position says any such thing.

John Ashcroft is a slimy, sanctimonious lizard who believes the world should be Christianized and that he can rewrite the Constitution at will based on nothing more than what you naively call his "faith" and then pretend it's in the best interests of the American people because he's protecting us from religious fanatics like himself who just happen to bow and scrape to a different story.  

Besides that, he routinely has sex with sheep, and perhaps other farm animals as well.  And I feel in no way compelled or even interested in proving any of this to you.  It's all easy enough for anyone to see.

And yes, the problem is both power and faith.  And with dudes like Ashcroft spitting their hatred and paranoia and trying to pry his drooling, leering way into my bedroom and Christian fanatics burning books and Muslim fanatics flying planes into buildings and preachers bilking retirees out of the money they need to live and priests poking twelve year old boys in the rectory and all of the rest of it, I feel no hesitation at all in crying out "Save me from this 'Faith.'"

Thankful for the non-faithful,

--John