The Prophesy
"...and I Did Not Speak Out"*



The Heretik has an excellent post on the importance of keeping records and the importance of remembering the "parallels of yesterday to today". Just go read it.
Bobby over at BBWW has an equally provoking post on the same issue. [*"Then they came for me --"]

Even more frightening is the fact that there are those who actually believe what this administration has done is not only acceptable, but necessary. It's all about the 'war on terror' they say.
The nifty thing about this 'war on terror' is the elusive definition of terror.(the terror of jackboots pounding down the street, or that little terror of a child)

With terrorism there is no specific enemy, no specific country, and no limit on the crimes that might be considered terroristic. (It's one of those pornography like things, I can't define it but I know it when I see it.)
I have a friend who fondly referes to her grandson as 'the terrorist'. And I'm sure there are days when he strikes fear in the hearts of his many little girl sisters and cousins. Does that make him a true terrorist? Only in the spectar of his little domain. There's just so many reasons you could call someone a 'suspected terrorist'. With just the right amount of spin it can be applied to anyone, anyplace or anything.

Equally true is there is no 'winning' the war on terror. It's a war that can go on indefinitely. By simply redefining the definition of the word terror/terrorist. Much like they redefined the 'reasons' we invaded Iraq.
The masters of spin have found their pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
The only question is how far will they go before enough Americans wake up and stop empowering them?
I believe the elections of '06 will be a telling indicator. Either the tide will turn and enough people will 'speak out' by removing as many from Congress as possible, or their takeover will be a fait accompli.
posted by wanda at 12:00 AM

PaTATOE/PaTAHTOE
how do YOU define 'terrorist'


" Did any right minded (i.e. not a retard) really think that the government is not using the Echelon program to collect intelligence on people..."[Chris]

No Chris, there aren't many of us (un)right-minded people out here who haven't suspected for years that the government was using whatever means available to them to spy on US. Oddly enough it was all those 'right'-minded people who were calling "US" paranoid moonbats. Isn't it interesting now that the truth has come out, all of a sudden all those 'right'-minded people are calling "US" crazy for NOT knowing it was going on?
These people are the masters of spin. They can take any revelation and turn it into a 'right' minded idea.
So, lets see how they can 'spin' this one.

"Now, by the way, any time you hear the United States government talking about wiretap, it requires -- a wiretap requires a court order. Nothing has changed, by the way. When we're talking about chasing down terrorists, we're talking about getting a court order before we do so." -- George Bush, April 20, 2004[Crabletta]

Now tell me how he isn't flat out LYING in that statement? He KNEW as he was speaking he was lying. He KNEW there were wiretaps being done daily without the benefit of any kind of court order.
If I ever had any doubts he KNEW the intelligence over WMDs in Iraq was being skewed and falsified, this would have erased them. He isn't a dumbass being misled by those he trust, he's a co-conspirator.
Of course I expect those 'right'-minded people to back him up. That's what they do.
I wonder, has it ever occurred to them, what they are doing is bit by bit giving away the rights and freedoms our forefathers fought so hard to garner for us? Is this the legacy we're leaving OUR children? That ours, was the generation that allowed freedom and liberty for all, to slip right through our fingers? Think about the world OUR children will be living in. Will they be forced to take up weapons against their own government to win back what we have allowed to be stolen?

Terrorism is being used as an excuse. An excuse this administration and their party have been milking since September 11th.
Yes there are terrorist out there, and they are succeeding. With the help of OUR very own government. The problem is the term/title "terrorist" can be applied very liberally. Would you believe there were people who actually tried to suggest the striking transit workers in New York, were no more than 'terrorist' holding the city hostage? Now just suppose our government decided those transit workers and their union were in essence 'terrorist'? Then they decided they needed to start wiretapping their phones and hacking their emails? After all they might be conspiring with other international organizations to put the city of New York at risk for an 'attack' by Al Qaida. Think that's a bit farfetched? Think again.
Karen Hughes (you know her, the Presidents 'right'hand woman) had the audacity to imply that people who support freedom of choice/abortion are terrorist. Maybe the government needs to step in and start wiretapping Womens Health Clinics where abortions are performed. Reading the emails of doctors who are know to perform abortions. Do your really believe it's not already being done?
As you can see it is far too easy to apply the title of 'terrorist' to anyone or any situation to allow our government to use it to justify their actions.
The people we have entrusted with our government are turning us into a country who's willing to sacrifice freedom and democracy for some small measure of so called safety. How far into the future do we have to look before we see our government has become the ultimate 'terrorist' organization?

In Iraq they protested when they suspected election irregularities.[Thousands Protest]
In Iran they are standing up against their governments attempt to control the airwaves.[Where Freedom Starts]
Meanwhile here in the US (land of the free, home of the brave and a beacon of democracy) we let the [not]'right' continue to define what is legal, what is acceptable and even what we will be watching or listening to on OUR televisions and radios.
When will the people of this country begin to care enough to take it to the streets? Maybe we can learn a lot from those to whom our government claims to be trying to spread democracy.
Hopefully we will learn it before it's too late.
posted by wanda at 4:38 PM