July 29, 2013 -- In the United States -- land of "freedom", "democracy" and "free" speech -- the values that American politicians like to brag about are under assault. Since the 9/11 terrorist attacks US politicians have implemented what many academics, journalists and civil libertarians have labelled as a "surveillance state" or "national security state" -- labels that the US and its western allies applied to the Soviet Union during the Cold War. It was something they claimed would happen to the West if the Soviets were able to impose their world view on us.We learned a couple of months ago via whistle blower Edward Snowden that the US government has been spying on the phone calls and Internet habits of hundreds of millions of innocent Americans (along with those of foreigners communicating with Americans) for years. By revealing that information to a journalist Snowden is now on the US most wanted list for doing what many American patriots have done in the past -- bringing to light violations against Americans by the American government. Had Daniel Ellsberg leaked the Pentagon Papers today he would be labelled a traitor and been jailed for life rather then have been celebrated as a whistle blower.
The very nature of democracy is under assault in the US as more and more state governments implement voter suppression laws that are aimed at preventing people from casting votes, especially if they happen to be minorities and are likely to vote against the Republicans. In addition, the defence of democratic principles and institutions has been severely undermined over the last 20 years by the willingness of both Democratic and Republican administrations to permit corporate concentration and control of the news and information infrastructure of a nation, and be cheerleaders for US government policies rather than watchdogs of democracy as has been the case historically. Defending democracy is the reason why the "press" is the only profession mentioned in the US Constitution.
Related: Alternative / Independent Media: The answer to democratic decay or just some more voices in the crowd?
And free speech is under assault as journalists are now threatened with charges of espionage and aiding and abetting enemies of America for revealing information about US government violations of civil liberties and US law. Even expressing political views, which might be offensive to some but are supposedly protected by the US Bill of Rights, may now be considered a criminal act or act of espionage.
Related: Alternative / Independent Media: The answer to democratic decay or just some more voices in the crowd?
And free speech is under assault as journalists are now threatened with charges of espionage and aiding and abetting enemies of America for revealing information about US government violations of civil liberties and US law. Even expressing political views, which might be offensive to some but are supposedly protected by the US Bill of Rights, may now be considered a criminal act or act of espionage.
In one of the most egregious violations of the constitutional guarantee of free speech ever Tarek Mehanna, an American Muslim, was convicted in April 2012
for translating terrorist documents into English, expressing sympathetic
views to what was contained in those documents, and posting them on the
Internet. He was sentenced to 17 years in prison for those actions. Essentially, his crime was to support the idea of waging war against an invading army perpetrating an aggressive attack on a Muslim nation. As it happens those invading armies currently happen to be those of the United States which have illegally invaded Muslim nations; violated the civil liberties of the people of those nations, killed thousands of innocent men, women and children of those nations; and justified its actions by claiming that it did so to protect America against terrorists. What is perverse about this is that Mehanna expressed his views in a nation where every vile and odious idea that one can think of is generally claimed as "free speech" protected under the US Constitution.
Related: Our One-Sided War on Terror
In this case, and I'm sure in cases to come, it will become clear who the real criminals are. And it's not the person whose political ideas you disagree with, but the people who have twisted and manipulated US laws and its justice system to imprison anyone who expresses political views that go against orthodoxy or might be considered distasteful.
In doing what he did Mehanna acted in the same manner that American revolutionaries did in the 1770s when they spoke out against the policies of the British colonial government. Those people, who Americans call the "Founding Fathers", acted upon their ideas in order to oppose the injustice and oppression of Britain in its American colonies and they are celebrated as heroes and freedom fighters for their actions. However, if they were alive today and spoke out against the oppressive and unjust policies of today's America, they would quickly be labelled traitors and terrorists, and they would be imprisoned for the rest of their lives.
In doing what he did Mehanna acted in the same manner that American revolutionaries did in the 1770s when they spoke out against the policies of the British colonial government. Those people, who Americans call the "Founding Fathers", acted upon their ideas in order to oppose the injustice and oppression of Britain in its American colonies and they are celebrated as heroes and freedom fighters for their actions. However, if they were alive today and spoke out against the oppressive and unjust policies of today's America, they would quickly be labelled traitors and terrorists, and they would be imprisoned for the rest of their lives.
The sooner Americans realize that a political and moral darkness is consuming their country, the sooner that nation can start returning to the light.
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