"The phrase "rule of law" is no pious aspiration from a civics textbook. The rule of law is what stands between all of us and the arbitrary exercise of power by the state. The rule of law is the safeguard of our liberties. The rule of law is what allows us to live our freedom in ways that honor the freedom of others, while strengthening the common good." - Rep. Henry Hyde (R-IL); Sept. 11, 1998

Imagine a day, after the demise of the human race, when aliens from a distant planet read Mr. Hyde's statement supporting articles of impeachment against Bill Clinton. Their first impression would be that ours was a rational, civilized society. They'd think we'd risen above our prejudices and pettiness to attain a level of legal fairness unrivaled upon the Earth.

But if alien anthropologists dug deeper and excavated the reality beneath the rhetoric, the stench of hypocrisy would waft far and wide. These beings would soon see that if such concern about the rule of law ever existed, articles of impeachment against George W. Bush would rain like water and flow like a mighty stream.

Imagine the confusion of these interplanetary visitors. They'd wonder why one president was impeached for arguably lying about a consensual adulterous affair in a civil case, while another president was free to invade a sovereign nation in violation of international and constitutional law.

The alien observers would wonder why one president was vilified for wagging his finger and denying sexual relations with that woman, while no one challenged a president who told lie after lie to justify an unnecessary war.

These galactic scientists would eventually exhume our Constitution and learn that Congress had sole power to declare war, even though George Bush waged war like a monarch. They'd also be surprised to find that our Constitution binds us to international treaties, even though Bush unilaterally violated (or withdrew from) such treaties.

Then they'd read the U.N. Charter and the Geneva Conventions to which we're bound and learn that a trial took place in Nuremberg for crimes against peace - a turning point that gave birth to an imperfect but comprehensive body of international law. Curiously, they'd find that fragile body - once nurtured by America - was buried by America.

The aliens would also be puzzled by the disparity between our claim as a moral nation and our invasion and occupation of Iraq. They'd note the clash of this claim with the 2,000-plus Iraqi civilians killed by our bombs, the tens of thousands of Iraqi military we slaughtered, the over 100 American souls who needlessly perished, the thousands of physically or mentally damaged human beings who survived, and the brutality we wielded to enforce Iraq's "liberation."

The alien anthropologists' investigation wouldn't end there, however. They'd soon uncover the crackdown on domestic dissent, the expansion of unwarranted police powers, and the governmental use of torture - all of which violated the Bill of Rights.

They'd also learn about the cloak of secrecy that enveloped government, the secret detainment and deportation of immigrants, the gulag of Camp X-Ray, military tribunals, and the imprisonment of U.S. citizens denied due process.

And it wouldn't be long before they discovered that American minorities and the poor populated a virtually separate nation, where justice was rarely blind to their color or their class.

Eventually, the alien researchers would wonder why the American people thought it even possible to export democracy to Iraq when the well was running dry at home. Ultimately, they'd ask why we didn't rise up and demand that George W. Bush be impeached and then tried before the Senate for his crimes.

What would these creatures conclude about citizens who saw the rule of law desecrated before their eyes, but allowed it to happen? What would they say about a society so captivated by the concept of law that lip service comfortably substituted for substance?

My suggestion? The alien anthropologists could borrow this passage from Pink Floyd's song "Sheep" - then engrave it into the museum wall next to their exhibit on America:

What do you get for pretending the danger's not real?
Meek and obedient you follow the leader
Down well-trodden corridors into the valley of steel
What a surprise
A look of terminal shock in your eyes
Now things are really what they seem
No, this is not a bad dream

Spokane resident Mike Kress (anotherportal3@yahoo.com) is a veteran and a member of the Peace and Justice Action League of Spokane.

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