It's hard to believe that in what we all perceive as the world's greatest democracy there would be prominent leaders who would happily do away with the judicial system, the third branch of government.

Our history books tell us that the meaning of democracy in the United States was born of the concept of a three-tier form of government -- the executive, legislative and judicial.

All three together form an effective governmental system of checks and balances so that one branch won't become excessively dominant and "have its way" against the people.

The judicial branch consists of all of the courts from the very bottom to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Indeed, at all levels it is the court system that safeguards our Constitution and Bill of Rights, guarantees us a peaceful forum for debate as opposed to physical violence, and holds the executive and legislative branches of government in check.

Many of us believe the judiciary is the strongest guarantee we have against oppression by government. We may not always agree with the courts' final decisions, but only fools would wish to dispose of the court branch of government just because they have a different opinion.

Don't be among them.

Sandra Day O'Connor, a Republican appointed judge who recently retired from the Supreme Court, has said the United States and its people are in danger of edging toward dictatorship if the disgruntled extremists continue to attack the judiciary.

In a strongly worded speech at Georgetown University, O'Connor took aim at certain extremists who had made repeated denunciations of the courts for alleged liberal bias, declaring:

"We must be ever vigilant against those who would strong-arm the judiciary."

O'Connor, a nominee of Ronald Reagan and the first woman Supreme Court justice, pointed to autocracies in the developing world and former communist countries as lessons on where interference with the judiciary might lead.

In still another speech, O'Connor strongly criticized the remarks by Tom DeLay, the former Republican leader in the House of Representatives, over a court ruling in the Terri Schiavo case.

DeLay, in obvious hostility to the judiciary, stated: "A time will come for the men responsible for this to answer for their behavior."

He then called for the impeachment of judges with whom he disagreed and called for more scrutiny of "an arrogant, out of control, unaccountable judiciary that thumbed their nose at Congress and the president."

Such threats, Justice O'Connor said, "pose a direct threat to our constitutional freedom," adding, "I want you to tune your ears to these attacks . . . you have an obligation to speak up. Statutes and constitutions do not protect judicial independence -- people do."

O'Connor concluded by pointing out that if the courts did not occasionally make politicians mad they would not be doing their jobs, and their effectiveness "is premised on the notion that we (the court) won't be subject to retaliation for our judicial acts."

Freedom, liberty and protection under the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights did not come cheap. Don't let them be taken away from you.

If you want the courts to protect you, protect the courts.