Fool Me Once
You know how the saying goes…
“Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.”
Well, shame on Americans. It seems all the Bush administration has to do is invoke the “T” word to get a majority of U.S. citizens to accede to their latest unconstitutional scheme to institute a Big Brother government.
We must invade Iraq. There are indisputable links to terrorism. It’s an integral part of the War on Terrorism. Blah, blah, blah…
It appears most Americans have figured out those justifications for starting a war were a bunch of BS, and that the terrorists in Iraq are there because we invaded the country, and only showed up after the invasion.
Then, in December the news hits that the administration has been spying on U.S. citizens since shortly after 9/11, the president having authorized the NSA to do so, without the mandated court approval (we are a nation built on the rule of law, my ass). There’s a bit of muffled outrage in the U.S. national media (don’t make too big of a deal about it; you might piss off your viewers and end up losing revenue) and even (gasp!) a bit of talk about impeachment and criminal charges.
Not to worry! The Bushies know what to do— This program is only spying on terrorists! We’re only stepping beyond the bounds of the law to protect you from terrorists! In fact, we’re not really breaking the law, because we’re at war, and the president can do whatever he wants if we’re at war.
Will Americans see through this? I mean, he hasn’t exactly been straight with us about this whole terrorism thing now has he? Of course they won’t! According to the latest NY Times poll, as long as they say the “T” word, the majority of U.S. citizens will let them do what they want. From the Wired news web site this morning:
“The poll, published in Friday’s New York Times, found Americans were more accepting of the surveillance program if they believed it was intended to protect them.
Fifty-three percent of those surveyed said they approved of President George W. Bush’s decision to authorize eavesdropping without prior court approval “in order to reduce the threat of terrorism,” The Times reported.”
Yeah, it’s barely a majority, but I still think it’s pretty depressing. The Benjamin Franklin quote about those giving up liberty to achieve temporary safety deserving neither was almost used to death after 9/11 and the ensuing hysteria that prompted easy passage of the “Patriot” Act and other travesties against the citizens of the formerly free country, the United States. But, unfortunately the quote is still way too appropriate.
Read more...
“Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.”
Well, shame on Americans. It seems all the Bush administration has to do is invoke the “T” word to get a majority of U.S. citizens to accede to their latest unconstitutional scheme to institute a Big Brother government.
We must invade Iraq. There are indisputable links to terrorism. It’s an integral part of the War on Terrorism. Blah, blah, blah…
It appears most Americans have figured out those justifications for starting a war were a bunch of BS, and that the terrorists in Iraq are there because we invaded the country, and only showed up after the invasion.
Then, in December the news hits that the administration has been spying on U.S. citizens since shortly after 9/11, the president having authorized the NSA to do so, without the mandated court approval (we are a nation built on the rule of law, my ass). There’s a bit of muffled outrage in the U.S. national media (don’t make too big of a deal about it; you might piss off your viewers and end up losing revenue) and even (gasp!) a bit of talk about impeachment and criminal charges.
Not to worry! The Bushies know what to do— This program is only spying on terrorists! We’re only stepping beyond the bounds of the law to protect you from terrorists! In fact, we’re not really breaking the law, because we’re at war, and the president can do whatever he wants if we’re at war.
Will Americans see through this? I mean, he hasn’t exactly been straight with us about this whole terrorism thing now has he? Of course they won’t! According to the latest NY Times poll, as long as they say the “T” word, the majority of U.S. citizens will let them do what they want. From the Wired news web site this morning:
“The poll, published in Friday’s New York Times, found Americans were more accepting of the surveillance program if they believed it was intended to protect them.
Fifty-three percent of those surveyed said they approved of President George W. Bush’s decision to authorize eavesdropping without prior court approval “in order to reduce the threat of terrorism,” The Times reported.”
Yeah, it’s barely a majority, but I still think it’s pretty depressing. The Benjamin Franklin quote about those giving up liberty to achieve temporary safety deserving neither was almost used to death after 9/11 and the ensuing hysteria that prompted easy passage of the “Patriot” Act and other travesties against the citizens of the formerly free country, the United States. But, unfortunately the quote is still way too appropriate.
Read more...
posted by RocketJam at 9:14 AM
1 comments
