In response to those who express outrage at protests against George W. Bush and his inauguration, I think a cursory glance at the basic tenets of the First Amendment, the foundation of our health as an enduring democracy, is in order.

After each election, we as a society, do not suspend our constitutional right and vital need to stand vigil at the gates of power and scrutinize the actions of our elected representatives. To sever such a basic and essential artery of our cultural and political identity as Americans would run dangerously parallel to the sentiment expressed by the president recently that "we had an accountability moment, and that's called the 2004 election."

Accountability does not occur in mere moments.

If it is to be accountability at all, it must endure. The president's glib comment to the contrary came in response to a reporter's question on the viability of our operation in Iraq, and is shown to be the farce that it is by recent polls that a clear majority of Americans think the president is handling Iraq poorly.

So, the point is this that those who stand at constant attention, those with the courage to always speak truth to power and those who do not fall back asleep at the helm of democracy the moment their ballots are cast should proudly continue in the tradition of dissent and scrutiny that has given our country meaning all these decades.