Bin Laden: Don't Fall for the Spin
The Guardian makes an important point on the bin Laden tape today, and warns Britain against falling for it. We need to convey the same message to our legislators who will use the tape as renewed fodder for the Patriot Act renewal legislation, increased surveillance and enhanced security measures.
At the heart of Bin Laden's message is the threat to unleash further terror attacks on American citizens in their homeland. Far from provoking a movement to appease the terrorists, this will surely do the reverse. It will play directly into the hands of those who insist that security must overwhelm all other considerations. It should not.
That's just what bin Laden wants, to destroy our democratic freedoms and our civil liberties. We should not give him what he wants.
We must take care that our leaders do not brainwash the public by using Bin Laden's tape as a justification for Bush's warrantless electronic surveillance of Americans or the torture of detainees (or their extraordinary renditions to countries that engage in torture.)
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