In the aftermath of the bombings in Boston, the networks
have been filled with stories of courage and kindness. Strangers helping strangers...people
running to the bomb site to assist the injured...police and firefighters
rushing to save as many lives as possible...and talk about courageous
Bostonians who will not allow this tragedy to take over their lives and how
they refuse to be afraid. There
was the obvious references to New York after September 11th, and how Americans
all over this nation always come together at times of tragedy to help
others. Bostonians were described
as defiant and resourceful and determined to get on with their lives. I just wish this were true for America.
Already, a congressman from New York is calling for legislation to
increase the number of cameras on the streets of America so no matter where you
go, someone is watching you. How
many cameras is enough? Should
there be a camera outside everyone's home so the authorities can see what you
leave your house with every morning?
In 1984, the TV was something you watched and also something that
watched you. This is just the
beginning of the parade of politicians and security experts who will suggest
ratcheting up security in this nation and increasing the ability of government
to spy on its citizens all in the name of protection and, by and large, most
Americans will go along with just about anything which is proposed. It is time once again to remind you of
Ben Franklin's quote about, "...those who sacrifice liberty for security,
get neither."
America is not a resourceful or resilient nation. Americans are easy to spook and scare
and once scared they will listen to anyone who promises to protect them and
keep them from harm. Concerns
about civil liberties and privacy and the fourth amendment will be portrayed as
cowardly, unpatriotic and naive.
After September 11th, Americans were eager to embrace the Patriot
Act...a proposal over 1,000 pages long, which few read and even fewer
understood how dramatically it would dilute and water down the
Constitution. Americans were told
the government needed to be able to spy on them, listen to their phone calls,
monitor their email and internet activities, all in the name of fighting
terrorism. We found out the
government broke law after law in their zealous power grab and then watched as
Congress gave them immunity from their actions. American corporations cooperated and gladly facilitated
these actions at the expense of their own customers and they too were granted
immunity. We now know the
government can come into your home, search it, invade your computer, leave
bugs, and never inform you of their actions or presence. They can go to your employer, branch
library, Netflix, Google, and all other search engines, and demand any
information on your activities and inquiries. They can do this with a national security letter which
prohibits the recipient from revealing any of these searches under penalty of
prison. At no time do they need to
get a warrant or need to show a
judge probable cause for these invasions of your person and papers (required by
the 4th amendment), and all of this was approved of by the majority of
Americans.
President Bush, along with Cheney, Wolfowitz et. al., knew the way to
get Americans to support a disastrous war in Iraq was to scare them. The steady drumbeat of weapons of mass
destruction, Saddam Hussein, Al Qaida and terrorism stampeded defiant and
resilient Americans, and a spineless Congress, into accepting an invasion which
never should have happened. Almost
5,000 dead Americans, hundreds of thousands of wounded, 1,000,000 Iraqi victims
and $1 trillion later we see the results of how that worked out. Fear overruled common sense once again.
Now we sit and watch. We
already have a congressman, King from New York, calling for more invasive
cameras all over the nation. Soon
you will hear no one can gather at the end of a marathon to greet runners as
they finish. Instead, the race
organizers will designate official cheerleaders to rousingly welcome while
family and friends are gathered in pens miles away. There will be proposals to search us more...watch us
more...surveil our activities online more...electronically monitor our cars
more and obtain copies of anything we purchase which could be
"suspect". Police and
federal agents will infiltrate groups whose politics are not mainstream enough or whose religion
is "other" than what is acceptable and all of this will be couched in
terms of keeping us safe.
Unfortunately, the defiant, resilient and courageous American populace
will embrace each new restriction enthusiastically because it will all make
them feel more secure.
A new bi-partisan report has been issued stating without a doubt America
has engaged in torturing prisoners in violation of both American and
international law. The report
concludes knowledge and approval of torture reached the highest levels of our
government. (yes, they knew) The report states unequivocally that
torture did not result in eliciting any significant intelligence nor result in
stopping any plots. It says the
use of torture undermined America's credibility with the international
community and made it more dangerous for American agents in the field. Despite these revelations and
conclusions, Americans will not be embarrassed or ashamed of what their
government did in their name because the end, keeping us "safe",
justified the means.
I have no doubt there were acts of courage and kindness and
extraordinary resilience exhibited in the minutes and hours after the bombs
exploded. The deaths of innocent
people, including an 8 year old boy, are indefensible and horrific as is the
wounding and scarring of hundreds or others and an entire city. However, Americans as a whole are not
defiant or resilient nor are they courageous. They are easily stampeded into accepting a larger and larger
police state ironically imposed to protect their "freedom". In the next days and weeks stay
vigilant. Where you see this
happening again, raise your voice...show courage...and oppose an any more
attacks on your civil liberties in the name of security. Ben Franklin will be proud of you.
