freedom and terror

The politics of fear works. And one area where success can be seen is in the loss of personal freedom. Ever since 9/11 both the US and the UK have severely curtailed personal freedoms. Citizens in those countries have been eager to give up the rights and freedoms that many consider to be the hallmark of a free society. In true Madison avenue style the US version of the law that takes away our liberty has been called the Patriot act. Now there is some advertising mojo !

All of this bargaining is done in return for perceived protection from evil terrorists. We have been quick to allow wiretapping, extensive spying into our personal lives, loss of habeas corpus, and the use of torture to extract confessions. The latter has been romanticized in shows such as "24," which is not surprisingly perhaps, paid for by FOX. 24 is meant to show how effective torture really is and how it can save the world. Which is easy of course if you write the script and know who the villains are. In real life the situation is a bit more murky and the suspects are more often than not innocent citizens. There have been plenty of examples of this already, but so far none have had any effect on our collective mindset. Mistreated individuals have often not received as much as an apology, let alone compensation. That while some were carted off to foreign countries to be tortured.

Recently, Gordon Brown in the UK won a victory to extend the time period the government can keep suspects without charging them. That should be surprising given the extremely poor track record of the UK anti-terror efforts. Not only have they killed innocent people in highly publicized events, but they had to let go of nearly everyone they ever arrested on suspicion of terror. The most important accomplishment of UK intelligence has been to ban bottled water on planes. And to promote the sale of travel-size tubes of toothpaste.

Fortunately, the US government seems to be turning in the right direction. Remember however that we have a much longer way to go. Nevertheless, the supreme court just dealt a major blow to the White House by allowing civilian appeals in Guantanamo terror tribunals. Not that it will matter much as I am sure the government will quickly invoke national security to classify any data that could be used in one's defense. Furthermore, they have been extremely careful to limit prosecution to carefully profiled individuals. Individuals nobody will feel particularly sorry for because they look like terrorists. Profiling is not allowed in screening, but it appears alive and well in arrests made.

It has often been said that we let the terrorists win if we suspend our personal freedoms. If that were true, the terrorists already won. But that is a rather naive view. The real winners are those in Washington and London who would prefer a tighter rein on the populace. Those who think that they know best. That anyone who disagrees with their ideas is not patriotic or worse, a traitor. Those who long to consolidate their power and eradicate dissent. The enemy within.