As expatriate Americans, my family and I reside in Asia.

We are hostage to the foreign policies of military adventurism

promoted by our current Republican President George Bush

and further supported by Democrat candidate John Kerry.

Both of the only two candidates promise to deepen the morass

we face as American expatriates working outsourced jobs

on behalf of American interests in foreign lands.

Constantly we endure natives and expatriates of other nations

scorning our leader as moronic, our military as inept,

our intelligence as incompetent, and our intentions as imperialist.

They regard Americans as synonomous with the policies of

our current president, and the truth about Kerry and his

evasions is already well documented in media over here.

Currently we dismiss these diatribes with the fact that we support

Michael Badnarik of the Libertarian party, since he alone

vows to end interventionism and the terrorism it nurtures.

Perhaps readers can then fathom the depths of my dismay

when I read in the LA Times how Don Manning

('Expatriate Voters' 09.04) speaking for many others

(http://www.fec.gov/) who wish to

terminate our freedom to speak as Americans,

voiding for us the First Amendment of our Constitution which reads:

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion,

or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;

or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press;

or the right of the people peaceably to assemble,

and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

This is a naked intention to criminalize free speech by parties

other than the Democrat-Republicans.

Those behind these rules wish to expand the imprisonment of

'free-speech zones' as so chillingly created from barricades and

razor wire at the DNC. The truth exposed by third-party candidates

such as Michael Badnarik reveals the hidden collaborations

between the Democrats and Republicans in such ventures

as the COMMISSION ON PRESIDENTIAL DEBATES and other more serious matters.

See http://www.opendebates.org/news/pressreleases/pro-democracy.html

The afterthought of being, as Mr. Manning demands,

disenfranchised along with 7 million other American hostages

is merely acid on an already mortal wound.