What does a Volvo have in common with the “War on Terror”?
Paul Campos is a columnist for the Rocky Mountain News. Previously I have written to the paper to dispute an article he wrote about the Supreme Court. Neither the letter nor the article are archived, so I can’t show what the arguments were. Anyway, all this to say, I have strongly disagreed with him in the past. He often gets tagged as a Liberal, however if you read his columns with any regularity, you would see he is anything but. He wrote a very insightful piece describing the nature of American attitudes towards risk in general and the “War on Terror”. I totally agree with the premise of his argument and wish more people understood the foundational elements of how and why the US Government has been able to so easily sell this sham of a war to the American Public.
3 comments:
I do agree that it is remarkably easy to use scare tactics in America, i feel that i personally supported the idea of war for different reasons, i don't think we'll be attacked again on a level as 9/11 (if that wasn't homegrown too)
But i understand your point that the stance of this ongoing war is weak, why not say what it is, "removing Saddam" "protecting oil" or whatever. do you think the public would support these stances also? i have no idea, but the idea that this is still a "War on Terror" is a little lame now.
Here is what I think about the possibility of another 9/11. I will probably write more about this in a post, but for now, I'll keep it short. I don't think an attack of the scale of 9/11 is possible without the knowledge of the government. There has never been a major attack on American soil that wasn't either known about and allowed to happen, or known about and carried through by the US government (for interesting reading material, read about the Maine being blown up to provoke the Spanish American War). While this is a highly inflammatory statement, I do believe it is true. At the very least, it is open for arguement. That being said, while it may seem impossible for Al-Qeada or other terrorists to get their act together enough to carry out another attack, I do believe it can and will happen again. Probably worse than the last time. The reasons will be the same, justification of a foreign policy that is Imperialistic and a domestic policy that is Facist. Strong words but look how far we have come since 1945.
If we did call this war what it was, it would be admirable, but not supported. The American public still has a little bit of a soul left, and wouldn't allow our government to get away with it. Interestingly, the American people are crying foul at this war saying things like "No blood for Oil!" while driving SUV's and demanding low gas prices. We are nation of hypocrites (I readily admit my own hypocrisy).
Although his example of a Volvo commercial may seem trivial, the fact is Campos is dead on with his observations. One of the greatest reporters of all time, John Stossel, produced an excellent piece on this very subject in 1994. (sample can be found here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqIQIocbB6Y )
For a more contemporary analysis of this subject, a good book is The Culture of Fear: Why Americans Are Afraid of the Wrong Things by Barry Glassner, a book that Michael Moore said influenced his documentary "Bowling for Columbine" (though Moore conveniently ignored the part of the book that explains why fear of gun violence is also irrational).
According to Glassner, “The short answer to why Americans harbor so many misbegotten fears is that immense power and money await those who tap into our moral insecurities and supply us with symbolic substitutes.” Money and power, I know, shocking eh?
In the context of the war in Iraq that means "The Republicans keep winning the election based on the idea that there is a Werewolf out there in the woods and we‘re the only ones who have a silver bullet. If you don‘t go along with their idea that indefinitely occupying the country of Iraq is the way to fight terror, then you‘re one of the al Qaeda types, which is completely ridiculous." Bill Maher on Hardball with Chris Matthers
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14833623/
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