Freedom Fried

It's the little steps that kill you. Is that frog boiled yet?

It's been said that when fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag. And praying to Republican Jesus for good measure.

The loss of civil liberties will has come slowly. Bit by bit, our freedoms become more circumscribed, in the name of security, until we can't remember what it was like to be free anymore.

The NSA wiretaps were at first disregarded by the autocrat apologists. The, when Bush admitted to circumventing the law, they attempted to negate the issue; first claiming that it was no big deal, that it was only terrists being tapped (begs the question: why not follow the law then?) Then the Bushists claimed the Preznit had the inherent authority to circumvent the law, just because he didn't believe it. A position which no legal or Constitutional scholars outside of the administration supports.

Recently, it has been discovered that the biggest telecommunications companies have been providing data on every call and email across the country to the NSA for an immense data mining operation. All of it. when this idea was first presented as the Total Information Awareness Program, it was terribly unpopular and voted down. Being an Administration that doesn't believe in listening to the wishes of the great unwashed masses that make up the governed, they just found a way to do it surreptitiously. I believe the deal was greased by the offer of control of the Internet, as described in that Save the Net ad over there on the side. No real evidence (yet), but that's how this group of savage greedheads work: screw the normals, while enriching the corpos.

Now, a part of this real vicious corrupt power theft becomes exposed as it is. A blatant attempt to intimidate information sources, and eventually punish them, by exposing them through tracking phones and emails. It has been discovered that ABC has been having all of their communications tracked to discover confidential sources.

Many people, including me, predicted this kind of thing would be happening, once the Administration (especially that Dick, Cheney) managed to get it's hands on the keys of power and create some kind of meager rubberstamp support in Congress. At this point, they have so encroached on the duties of Congress that there is no need for the rubberstamp anymore, they just claim inherent authority and the Republicans meekly follow in fear and stupidity. There is little satisfaction in having been proven right, or saying “I told you so.”

This is beyond the pale. I would be incoherent with rage, if I wasn't terrified at what is portended. This is not paranoia; this is NOW. there is no allegation of wrongdoing here. The Bush administration wants to know the identities of people who've been saying bad things about them. For what purpose? Given the track record, is there any conceivable doubt that they want to identify, intimidate, and punish anyone who would dare to expose them for the lying, corrupt, unethical, pathetic weaseling screwheads they are?

If something is not done about these insane power-mad grasps at total control, one day we will be able to look back and correctly identify them as an integral part of what is in all aspects a coup. well, we'll be able to look back if we're in another country that is, where knowledge will not be controlled and free speech will be allowed. Because if they're not turned back, in America there will not be the freedom to talk or write about these things. They will be obscured by the 'correct' history and interpretation, which is that abrogation of the Constitution is Necessary for Protection from vague and omnipresent threats, and will be reinstated as soon as the Current Emergency is passed.