Tag Archive for 'freedom'

There is no question that an act of aggression towards innocent people is unacceptable. I do no condone the actions of the alleged suspect and never would. This little blurb isn’t here to debate the situation. Rather, I want to make a few notes about some observations and worries I have for the present and future. Things that might affect our daily lives. Please feel free to chime in with the comments.

– “Anti-Terrorism” laws and the increased power of the State (things like the Patriot Act) don’t seem to be working. The potential bombing was thwarted because a street vendor reported seeing smoke coming from a car. This speaks volumes and provides proper evidence that increased restriction on our civil liberties to weed out potential “terrorists” is not the answer. Something like a National ID card will do nothing to stop potential acts of aggression by enemies. It will only make average everyday citizen’s lives more complicated. As well as raise tons of privacy issues nation wide and increase State power as a whole. State power did not stop this bombing. A concerned and responsible citizen did.

– As a Connecticut resident I worry that now we will see an increase in legislation for firearms. The suspect purchased a gun, later found in the car in Connecticut. I have an inkling that this will lead anti-gun advocates to scream to the heavens that we need tighter regulation and more strict laws to scrutinize potential candidates for carry permits. What I feel they fail to understand is that a criminal who seeks to commit a crime doesn’t care what specific laws are in place to stop him from obtaining a gun. One way or another the potential criminal will obtain a weapon. All more regulation will do is make it harder to obtain a license to carry for free citizens seeking to protect themselves.

– The word Terrorism has taken on a life of its own. After all, what exactly is a Terrorist? What is the proper definition? People give meaning to words and eventually if we aren’t careful those words take on a life of their own. We do the same thing with symbols. I fear that “Terrorism” and “Terrorist” have transcended actual crimes themselves. Whenever we hear of a madman on the loose we default to the idea that they are Muslim and “obviously” support a terrorist organization. The media spin on this is dangerous. We must define these crimes as the acts of criminals based on our laws and regulation. Some of them may be mentally disturbed or not, however the idea of branding anyone who now commits a serious crime a “terrorist” will only leave the country in a panic. When common, middle class, average Americans panic I fear some of most important civil liberties will be abandoned in the name of “safety” and “security”. This is a mistake. The State cannot stop individuals from carrying out heinous acts of aggression. See #1.

That’s it for now, obviously just some of my immediate concerns. These actions which lead to the theft of innocent lives are never acceptable. These criminals do not have a right to take anyone’s life but their own. However to protect the nation from these criminals, no State has a right to hinder your freedom and liberty. Keep that in mind.

“Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.” — Franklin