Defenders of civil liberties readily recognize when some state interventions-such as censorship of the press or forced religious observances-violate civil liberties. However, many of the same defenders of civil liberties are unable or refuse to recognize when certain other state interventions-such as civil commitment-violate civil liberties.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) claims to be the premier American organization for the protection of civil liberties. (It does not claim to be a "libertarian" organization.) The Union's wcbsitc states: "The ACLU's mission is to fight civil libertics violations wherever and whenever they occur. . . . We're not anti-anything. The only things we ...