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PAGE 4, APRIL 27, 2009, THE ISLANDER
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Elise J. Permar - Publisher 1972-2003
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Is anybody out there paying attention?
By Pamela Permar Shierling
Another website you need to be
aware of is Investor's Business Daily,
www.ibdeditorials.com. On April
22 they posted an editorial entitled
"Waste, Fraud, Abuse. Fraud: The gov
ernment's $750 billion bank bailout
hype. So far, a new government report
claims, the program is rife with inef
ficiency and fraud. Surprised? You
shouldn't be."
While you are on their website check
out the other editorials including the
ones on the left. “I
was passed six months ago amid great
Are We All Enemies of the State?
By John W.
Two years ago, I alerted people to
the fact that the groundwork was being
laid for a new kind of government
where virtually everyone is a suspect
and it will no longer matter if you're
innocent or guilty, whether you're a
threat to the nation or even if you're
a citizen. What will matter is what
the president—or whoever happens
to be occupying the Oval Office at the
time—thinks.
At the time, I was voicing concerns
about the liberties the Bush adminis
tration was taking in its application of
the term "enemy combatant." Today,
under the Obama administration, the
perceived threat is coming from an
altogether different direction: "righ
twing extremists."
In a recent report issued by the
Department of Homeland Security,
"Rightwing Extremism: Current Eco
nomic and Political Climate Fueling
Resurgence in Radicalization and
Recruitment," an extremist is defined
as anyone who subscribes to a par
ticular political viewpoint. Rightwing
extremists are broadly defined in the
report as individuals and groups "that
are mainly antigovernment, rejecting
federal authority in favor of state or
local authority, or rejecting govern
ment authority entirely."
The report is problematic on many
levels, but several things in particular
stand out.
First, the report is short on facts
and long on generalizations. The DHS
states that it has "no specific informa
tion that domestic rightwing terror
ists are currently planning acts of vio
lence." Nevertheless, it goes on to list a
number of scenarios that could arise as
a result of so-called rightwing extrem
ists playing on the public's fears and
discontent over various issues, includ
ing the economic downturn, real estate
foreclosures and unemployment—all
problems created by the government.
Second, it uses the words terror
ist and extremist interchangeably. In
other words, voicing what the govern
ment would consider to be extremist
viewpoints is tantamount to being a
terrorist. However, if you buy into the
government's definition, I could very
well be considered a terrorist. So too
could John Lennon, Martin Luther
King Jr., Roger Baldwin (founder of the
ACLU), Patrick Henry, Thomas Jeffer
son and Samuel Adams—all of these
men protested and passionately spoke
out against government practices with
which they disagreed and would be
prime targets under this document.
The message to the American people is
clear: be careful what you say because
Whitehead
if you say something the government
doesn't like, you'll become a political
enemy.
Third, the 10-page document takes
pains to describe the political views
of those who would qualify as being a
rightwing extremist. For example, you
are labeled a rightwing extremist if you
voice concerns about a myriad of issues
including: policy changes under Presi
dent Obama; the economic downturn
and home foreclosures; the loss of U.S.
jobs in manufacturing and construction
sectors; and social issues such as abor
tion, interracial crimes, immigration
and same-sex marriage.
DHS also issues a red-flag warning
against anyone who promotes "con
spiracy theories involving declarations
of martial law, impending civil strife or
racial conflict, suspension of the U.S.
Constitution, and the creation of citi
zen detention camps."
As a constitutional attorney, I've
written on all of these topics at one
time or another, and there is nothing
conspiratorial about the threats they
pose to our rights. Yet according to this
document, I am an enemy of the state.
If anyone seems to have a conspira
torial bent, it's the DHS under the
Obama administration. Lacking any
concrete facts, this document reeks of
paranoia on the part of government
officials about a possible populist upris
ing. The danger, however, is that the
government has incredible resources to
follow through on their fears—which
means surveillance and intimidation of
citizens who disagree with the govern
ment.
For example, the National Security
Agency, which has been authorized to
listen in on your phones and track your
electronic communications, is putting
the finishing touches on an artificial
intelligence system that uses informa
tion collected from a variety of sources
(phone bills, credit card statements,
Internet activity, etc.) to anticipate
your every move. And with the help of
the Obama White House, legislation
was recently introduced into Congress
that will give the federal government
the authority to shut down the Internet
in a time of declared emergency.
When coupled with the DHS mis
sive on rightwing extremism, these
encroachments on our rights appear
even more ominous, especially in light of
a U.S. Army War College report issued
last fall that called on the military to
be prepared for a "violent, strategic
dislocation inside the United States."
According to the report, such an upris
ing could be provoked by "unforeseen
economic collapse," "purposeful domes
tic resistance," "pervasive public health
emergencies" or "loss of functioning
political and legal order"—all related
to dissent and protests over America's
economic disarray.
This is nothing less than the shot
across the bow, a warning that the
government will be targeting for sur
veillance those who disagree with the
administration politically. They're
going to monitor internet activity,
phone calls, as well as what commen
tators and bloggers have to say. DHS
will also be working with state and
local agents to conduct surveillance.
As the report states: "DHS will be
working with its state and local part
ners over the next several months to
ascertain with greater regional speci
ficity the rise in rightwing extremist
activity in the United States, with a
particular emphasis on the political,
economic, and social factors that drive
rightwing extremist radicalization." In
other words, they're going to national
ize their paranoia.
In taking such an overt stance
against political rivals, the govern
ment is taking aim at a protected First
Amendment right: the right to political
speech and thought. Targeting people
because of their political views is Nix-
onesque, a repeat of past tactics to
preempt political opposition.
Americans have a right to be dis
gruntled. They shouldn't be censored,
subjected to surveillance or intimidated
into silence simply because they take to
the streets, protest or choose to carry
a picket sign that attacks government
policies
Why should any American be treated
like an enemy of the state just because
we choose to exercise our constitutional
rights?
Constitutional attorney and author
John W. Whitehead is founder and
president of The Rutherford Institute.
He can be contacted at johnwdSruther-
ford.org. □
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