so, i have been thinking much about many things- as is my wont :) this whole racial profiling thing going on really bothers me. the argument goes- in law enforcement and in general i suppose- that certain people are perpetrating certain crimes more often than the general population- and thus we can save time and resources and not have to look at everyone. yeah- except we are supposed to be an open society where folks are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. the current argument that is being waged is against middle eastern males on air planes. or anywhere else on the planet i suppose. i won't get into the african american male profile in this particular post- nor the hispanic profiling. those, i have a feeling, will need more attention and knowledge than i can give them- and maybe i can persuade an expert into guest posting- but i digress.
yes- the whole bruhaha in the uk about those two folks who were found to be completely innocent and yet mass hysteria was allowed to rule the day. now, before folks get their panties in a bunch about how 'islamo fascists' want to kill poor innocent amercans for absolutely no reason other than we are just so great- i am going to state QUITE CLEARLY that i am not for islamic terrorist groups like al quaeda, et al. i find their tactics disgusting and reprehensible and the only folks that these tactics help- are the groups. millions of innocent arabs, jews, africans, westerners, etc., are paying with their lives and their way of life for the stupidity and criminality of a few. i am also not for the neo con fascists forcing their world view on unwilling americans and the rest of the world. i view them in the same vein as the islamic nutjobs and have stated that on many occasions.
as colbert would say-"movin'on"- so having said that to say this- this airplane stuff is ridiculous. screen absolutely everyone the same way. if there is suspicion of anything untoward, pull that person aside. don't miss something because you are looking for one thing and not seeing the other. do you honestly think that these folks are too stupid to come up with something different? seriously folks- it isn't going to be an airplane again as much as the neo cons want to scare you into thinking so. i am personally more worried about our infrastructure that continues to be left wide open. our energy supplies, water supplies, ports, train depots, food supplies, medical facilities- yep- all wide open. but goddamn it if you take breast milk on a plane. i am thinking homegrown terrorism and i am thinking biochemicals or germs.
not only that- but islam is the fastest growing religion in the world. did you hear me people? in the world. that means black folks, white folks, yellow folks, brown folks- all believe in islam. yes, the middle eastern folks have their knickers in a twist but so did the phillipines not too long ago. look at malaysia- there was a night club bombing there that killed how many westerners? so- my thought- professional screeners and equipment. i mean actual trained folks at the screeners. it's taxpayer's money- shouldn't we get what we are paying for? seriously.
on to book banning. that one really tees me off. especially when i read the reasons given. especially after i read some folks from the island of cuba who were interviewed tell how they would not want american democracy because they all had jobs and healthcare. because an exiled cuban family knew what their version of the truth was and wants to inflict it on everyone. because they wouldn't want any good news to come out of cuba- it would defeat their mission- and their movement. piss poor reasons to defy the first amendment in my estimation. yes, that's right folks- banning books is an unpatriotic and undemocratic thing to do. you don't want your kid to read it- then don't let them read it. don't read it yourself. you have no right whatsoever to infringe on my constitutional right to read it. that is what i am fighting for.
think i'll go have my wine now :)
correction- when talking about the nightclub bombing in malaysia i actually meant indonesia. thanks to bz.
10 comments:
I believe blacks were heavy into Islam way back in the vietnam era, mainly for a draft dodge. There was also a star basketball player from UCLA named Lew Alcinder. You may recognize the name of Kareem Abdul Jabar.
and mohamed ali and on and on. it isn't islam that is bad- it is the same with any religion- people corrupt it as a means to an end. unfortunately, innocent folks are always caught in the crossfire.
Betmo, my hero for the day!
look at malaysia- there was a night club bombing there that killed how many westerners?
I actually live in Malaysia and this never happned, you must be thinking of Indonesia. Malaysia is actually a very diverse, moderate nation made up of Chinese, Indian and Malay cultures. It is also highly globalized. For better or for worse, I still can't decided, I buy my books from Borders. There are McDonalds and Starbucks on every corner.
Oh and profiling no matter how you argue it is backwards, racist, and wrong.
thank you bz- i was writing off the cuff and i did indeed mean indonesia. my apologies. i feel the same way about the racial profiling. i watched a program last night about american neo nazi movements and these people are terrorists on par with the fringe muslims that the neo cons talk about. these folks are white. tim mcveigh and the various militia groups is another example. very white.
Cheers, betmo. The problem, from where I sit, is not religion, or race. It is simply haves, and have nots. Them that has, gets.
And the 'freedom' we keep hearing about? Freedom for them that has to gets more. And more.
Democracy can never be 'spread' to the world by people who have no true concept of it. People can fight for democracy, but it can never be imposed from above.
Ironically, the Bushi'ites are actually bringing democracy to many parts of the world. The voting voice of the people (the very definition of democracy) has elected Hamas in Palestine, Hezbolaa in Lebannon, and the Shi'ias in Iraq. As well as social democrats like Hugo Chavez and Evo Morales in South America. The focused chase for filthy lucre has unified peoples the world over.
The point of democracy is a quest for fair play, truth, and cooperative peace under the rule of law...not a system of greed, grab, and global domination.
I love America for it's potential; I abhor our own government's slide into debauchery. There is a vast difference between patriotism and loyalism. A Patriot demands we strive for that more perfect Union. A Loyalist merely parrots the needs of the entrenched powers.
I know I'm speaking in broad ideas, but I'll offer some practical thought. Terrorism, like insurgencies, cannot be bombed out of existance. I don't know about you, but I feel that small bands of violent people are best handled by local investigation and police. The 'revenooers' came out of the cities to stop moonshining back years ago, and that worked real well. Huh. Left alone, the mountain folk did right fine swapping 'shine for food or what have you, and nobody had to get shot. The only thing the guv'mint accomplished was making the local sheriff irritated. I guess you can tell I appreciate the fact all politics is local. But my point is that the little folks in the Mideast don't deserve to be bombed any more than the little people up in the mountains who knew a moonshiner deserved to get hammered. Humans are messy, and so is democracy. I'll take messy over daisycutter bloodshed any day.
I better hush; the only thing more annoying than Our Only President is someone who commits the crime of BUI (blogging under the influence ~hic~). I take a bit of heart in the fact I can spell better three sheets to the wind than the Leader of the Free World can talk dead sober.
Salud!
"not only that- but islam is the fastest growing religion in the world. did you hear me people? in the world. that means black folks, white folks, yellow folks, brown folks- all believe in islam."
betmo, fortunately they preach peaceful Islam,
however just because you claim to be a muslim doesn't make you a muslim
and most 'decent' imamms condemn terrorism outright ... but
just as some fundamentalist Rabbis preach war
and some fundamentalist Christian preachers preach war
some fundamentalist muslims preach jihad or holy war.
But real jihad is suppose to be the internal struggle between what is good and what is not
As we know from 'external' struggles, two wrongs never created a 'right' they just created a lot of blind. maimed and dead people including civilians and innocent children )non-combatants)
Once again, the way Euro-American whites decide to approach security and peace is by taking the wrong turn. They are taking one thing and making it a political spotlight on fake fear so we will bow down and follow whatever they want. Nutjobs and idiots run the place. Well done, there Betmo - keep up the pressure on them.
You're right, it's not Islam.
It's a very small minority of Muslims within the religion who do not accept nor believe in pluralism
("A condition in which numerous distinct ethnic, religious, or cultural groups are present and tolerated within a society")
I disagree with you though...they are still trying to use planes. Unfortunately, it's still the best way to kill the most people (the people on the plane and the people that the plane will smash into)
With all the electronic technology at our fingertips, it makes no sense to profile..why can't these asshats merely run each name through a computer at the NSA? It would only take a few minutes, if that. I am sure with the billions we spend on intelligence and intel tech they would have most of the alias names used by the cretins trying to bring the world to the brink of WW3
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