September 11th in America, Circa 1984

"He who gives up freedom for safety deserves neither". 

Much has changed in the last ten years, and it certainly isn't 2001 anymore.  Have you noticed the changes?  No, silly, not just in the airport screening lines.  I'm talking bigger, even more insidious changes.


You let that fear all up in your head and now it's living there rent free.  Never let anyone or anything live in your head rent free. 


Let's talk about your civil rights. These are the laws that this country based itself on.  You know, the home of the free and what not.


First, you have to understand the Patriot Act.  The Patriot Act was an act of Congress signed into law by George Bush after the September 11th attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001.  It was recently extended  by President Obama for another four years.


The act totally and dramatically reduced restrictions on law enforcement agencies' ability to search telephone, e-mail communications, medical, financial, and other records.  Yes, that's right, it's all about our privacy. Apparently, we are our own worst enemies.


The Patriot Act also expanded the Secretary of the Treasury’s authority to regulate financial transactions.  The experts say this is mostly those threats involving foreign individuals and entities. Puh-lease. I think it's probably more for economic control in general.

The act also expanded the definition of terrorism to include domestic terrorism, thus enlarging the number of activities to which the USA PATRIOT Act’s expanded law enforcement powers can be applied.

It also broadened the discretion of law enforcement and immigration authorities in detaining and deporting immigrants suspected of terrorism-related acts. That cracks me up, I thought we were trying to keep "them" all out, not detain them.  Are you still following this?

Seriously, look at the components.  You're giving up access to your medical records just so you can feel safe.  Hello?  You're allowing people to listen to your private conversations because the enemy may be amongst us.  Trust me on this, anytime you react out of fear, no good follows.

You know, now that I'm thinking about it, the Patriot Act is very much like the Marriage Agreement.  Did I mention I once got married on September 11th?

Anybitter-is-me, the Patriot Act is bad for all of us.  No matter how terrified you are of the unknown entity, taking back your civil rights will be a million times worse. Why?  Because that is the stuff that revolutions are made of, and that's how we got here in the first place.  Do we really need to do that again?  Revolutions are a lot of work and that shit is the scariest.

New York City remains the greatest city on the face of the earth.  You can bomb our buildings, but you can't bomb our spirit.  Unless it's our own governing body, then all bets are off.  So there you have it.  

rk.