Probably no word better defines or underscores the Bush presidency than “terrorism” even though his administration wasn’t the first to exploit this highly charged term. We use it to explain what “they do to us” to justify what we “do to them,” or plan to, always deceitfully couched in terms of humanitarian intervention, promoting democracy, or bringing other people the benefits of western civilization…
The drums of war a beat loudly with the nebulous term Terrorism. Whipped into a frenzy, otherwise intelligent individuals are transformed into mindless – kill ‘em all, let God sort ‘em out – types. It is understandable that Americans view themselves, their form of government, and their nation as the best in the world. The people of the United States are the most charitable in the world, our court system is one of the most fair (although this is quickly changing), and when upheld, our Constitution provides the greatest protection to the rights of the individual of any nation on Earth (although this is quickly changing as well). With minimal encouragement and a little rhetoric a moralistic justification to impose our system on others is easily woven into the fabric of our everyday belief system.
Our government and the industrial/military/banking complex are quick to take advantage of and encourage such an egocentric view of the world to justify subversion, intervention, destabilization, invasion, and occupation of foreign nations. This is not a new foreign policy but one that has been in effect since before the birth of anyone alive to read this. The CIA calls it blowback when a group retaliates for such intervention. The politicians call it moral justification for undeclared war while the media writes it up as senseless terrorism and random acts of violence, largely because the precipitating events are not know to the general public or media.
While presidential contenders feign shock and well rehearsed indignation at any factual discussion of U.S. foreign policy and its ramifications, it is becoming painfully clear thanks to the vast availability of credible research information available on the internet that the tactic of terrorism can and is used on both sides of the equation.
The first step to getting control of our foreign policy is an understanding of the different forms of terrorism and how it is effectively used by governments and power brokers around the world. War is NOT peace, freedom is NOT slavery, and ignorance is NOT strength no matter how many times they tell us it is…
Read Stephen Lendman’s commentary.
Read Congressman Ron Paul’s 2001 commentary
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