Sowell sells out

Who'd a-thunk it? Thomas Sowell endorsing big government intrusion. Incredible.
When his column of approximately 16 June (publishing date varying from publication to publication) appeared in our local "news"paper, I thought the paper had again put his name on somebody else's column.
Sowell -- usually one of my must-reads, usually, in fact, one of my heroes -- said this:
"Not only individuals but whole nations have lost their sense of danger after having been protected from those dangers."
He tried to make the analogy that people ignore polio vaccination because the vaccinations of previous years had so nearly wiped out polio that it seemed unnecessary, and the same attitude applies to the mis-called USA PATRIOT Act, which has prevented further acts of terrorism.
He ends his column:
"The Patriot Act is no closer to perfection than anything else human. It has costs, as every benefit has had costs, hard as it is for many among the intelligentsia to accept anything less than 'win-win' situations.
"'I have a real problem with fascism,' as one lady in a trendy California bookstore said fiercely, when discussing the Patriot Act. (sic)
"She was aghast when I replied, 'I hadn't noticed any fascism.'
"Have you?"
Well, gosh, Tom, how about the PATRIOT Act itself? How about continuing raids by jack-booted thugs on sick people growing or using marijuana? How about federal intrusion into what should be private acts between consenting adults, such as employment? How about federal mandates forcing states to get ever more personal and private data from individuals to be implanted on driving licenses in a new national ID bill? How about the threat to impose federal controls on blogs? How about the likely impending reinstatement of the military draft? How about ...?
The list goes on and on, and likely will get longer still.
Thomas Sowell has previously been one of the most intelligent, even wise, commentators in wide distribution, but this column was and is a shocker.