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I'll be the first to admit that I don't know how Helena-West Helena Arkansas can effectively deal with the sort of violence that's resulted in the police, the mayor, and the city council endorsing a 24 hour curfew in certain neighborhoods...a curfew that clearly violates the First and Fourth Amendments of the Constitution, and probably any number of statutes and judicial decisions.

However, the fact that it's gotten to that point speaks volumes, and not in a good way. To think that the wealthiest nation in recorded history has pockets of poverty every bit as desperate as, say, Honduras or El Salvador should astonish, and, honestly, shame us (is Cindy McCain "proud" of this desperation?) And while Helena-West Helena might be--for now--unique in accepting what Mayor James Valley describes as "some infringement on constitutional rights," something tells me the desperation isn't confined to dinky little towns in the Deep Fried South.

And then what happens?