Jan 24, 2006
The New American "Secret" Uniformed Police
Paul Craig Roberts has some interesting comments on our newest Secret Police.
The great American historian, Mercy Otis Warren, long before FDR in 1941, referred to the British occupation of Boston in Oct., 1768, as a "day of infamy." In modern America, that day arrived in 2005, and most Americans were unaware of it. Of course, we have been using such forces "out there" for years, but have now brought them down below the Rubicon.
Somewhere deep in the bowels of the White House, those doyens of style, Laura Bush, Condi Rice, Karen Hughes and Lynn Cheney, are probably spending some time designing the new uniforms. Ah, but, will they wear Jackboots?, that is the question! Of course, if Hillary is elected in 2008, they will be redesigned, anyway!
I am reminded of 1965, when those several of us at FAU seeking to speak out against the Vietnam War had our signs torn down with the sanction of the administration, even when Sen. Ernest Gruening, one of two who had voted against the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, was the speaker. The only intellectual sanctuaries were at the Quaker Meeting Houses, the Unitarian Fellowships, and the Catholic College for women, then nearby. As the siege mentality purposefully exploited by the expansion of the "War on Terror" increases, those days may soon be with us again, in spades.
Some now talk of leaving America, but I am reminded of the Ancient Taoist proverb, also found, as I recall, somewhere in Isaiah, "Go straight to the heart of danger, for there you will find safety."
When I was consulting years ago in the late '60s, I once boarded a plane in WPB, and Teddy Kennedy came aboard with two guys I assumed were Secret Service agents. Why did I think so? — they both had on the same style tie with a series of "S.S."s embroidered all over it. I wonder if Abe Lincoln originated that idea before Dr. Goebbels or Himmler?
The great American historian, Mercy Otis Warren, long before FDR in 1941, referred to the British occupation of Boston in Oct., 1768, as a "day of infamy." In modern America, that day arrived in 2005, and most Americans were unaware of it. Of course, we have been using such forces "out there" for years, but have now brought them down below the Rubicon.
Somewhere deep in the bowels of the White House, those doyens of style, Laura Bush, Condi Rice, Karen Hughes and Lynn Cheney, are probably spending some time designing the new uniforms. Ah, but, will they wear Jackboots?, that is the question! Of course, if Hillary is elected in 2008, they will be redesigned, anyway!
I am reminded of 1965, when those several of us at FAU seeking to speak out against the Vietnam War had our signs torn down with the sanction of the administration, even when Sen. Ernest Gruening, one of two who had voted against the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, was the speaker. The only intellectual sanctuaries were at the Quaker Meeting Houses, the Unitarian Fellowships, and the Catholic College for women, then nearby. As the siege mentality purposefully exploited by the expansion of the "War on Terror" increases, those days may soon be with us again, in spades.
Some now talk of leaving America, but I am reminded of the Ancient Taoist proverb, also found, as I recall, somewhere in Isaiah, "Go straight to the heart of danger, for there you will find safety."
When I was consulting years ago in the late '60s, I once boarded a plane in WPB, and Teddy Kennedy came aboard with two guys I assumed were Secret Service agents. Why did I think so? — they both had on the same style tie with a series of "S.S."s embroidered all over it. I wonder if Abe Lincoln originated that idea before Dr. Goebbels or Himmler?