COLUMN: Don’t follow blindly, ask questions
Nothing like a good war to bring us all together. Suddenly we are patriotic Americans, gathering beneath our new flags and rallying behind our cause. I’ve heard many folks say we’ve got to be united, that during this time of crisis we should put our differences aside and support our president. I could not disagree more.
Now is not the time to blindly follow anyone, especially not our leaders. If anything, we should be extra wary of our government lest we follow it down a dark alley and end up in a long-term war with no exit strategy or realistic chance of victory. We should question every statement made by the officials, from the lowest of talking heads all the way up to the president himself. Most importantly, we must question any law which attempts to increase police powers by ignoring the Bill of Rights.
It’s funny what fear will do to a society. Suddenly our rookie president has an approval rate of 85 percent, the highest since his daddy ushered in the New World Order back in 1991 when he “liberated” Kuwait. I imagine old Adolph Hitler enjoyed his wave of popularity back in 1940 when the war was fresh and victory seemed imminent. I’ll even wager that Stalin was deified during the siege of Stalingrad, despite his penchant for murdering his own citizens. Under no circumstances should we bow down to our leaders and do whatever they say, not during times of crisis and certainly not during times of war.
War is not a word to be used lightly, yet our government uses the term like the latest slang: “War” on poverty, “war” on communism, “war” on drugs, “war” on terrorism. How many rights have we already given up in the name of these wars? Confiscation of property before trial. Random roadblocks and searches on our own highways. Peeing in a cup in exchange for a low-paying job at the treadmill factory. These kinds of intrusions will undoubtedly get worse as we gear up for “a new kind of war,” one which promises world unity but will result in a global police state.
Paranoid you say? These terrorists operate in separate groups and are scattered throughout some 60 countries, including the good old U.S.A. Tracking them down is hard enough, and actual arrest will be even harder. The only way this “Operation Enduring Freedom” will succeed is if our government puts the entire planet under surveillance and forces other nations to open their borders to our military. All avenues of communication will be monitored. Cash will be replaced by a universal debit card. All modes of travel will involve searches and questioning: Where do you live? Do you have a full-time job? Where are you going and why? National identification cards will be issued, drug tests will be implemented, and armed guards will become a common sight.
If all this sounds absurd, I agree. But ask yourself this question: How else do you bring an end to terrorism? There’s a lot of folks left out of the global political process, and they will use any means necessary to get us to hear what they have to say. If we lose this war, then more Americans may lose their lives in future attacks. But if we win, then prepare to accept that mark on your forehead, because a victory in this war means there is no place left to hide from the watchful eye of our kinder, gentler, global Gestapo.
True freedom and total security cannot co-exist. Either we accept the fact the world is not a perfect place and do our best to make it better, or we turn responsibility for our existence over to someone else so we can be “safe” from savage acts of terrorism. As for me, I think Mr. Henry summed it up quite nicely: “Give me liberty, or give me death.”
Charles Clayton is currently pursuing a second bachelor’s degree, and his column runs every other Wednesday in The Statesman. Comments may be sent to cmclayton@cc.usu.edu.