Ironic. The people who are supposedly part of the most repressive religion in history are now the ONLY ones pursuing legal means to combat the intrusive system of surveillance that good old Mr. Snowden recently brought to our attention. Yes, you heard it right, Muslims in New York are suing the NYPD for encroaching on their constitutional right to privacy. Now, you may be finding yourself thinking: hmmm I should probably do the same except bring my suit against Obama and all his cronies. This is a perfectly logical reaction and if that was your line of thinking, then give yourself a pat on the back for acting like a true American.
Logic be damned though it seems! As I sifted through the commentary on numerous articles, which has become a habit/compulsion now that my husband has gotten me hooked (it’s like a car wreck, I know I shouldn’t look, but I do), I realized logic was not a forgone conclusion in this case. The majority of commenters weren’t applauding Muslims for standing up for their CONSTITUTIONALLY endowed rights, but rather angry at the audacity of Muslims to do so. The prevailing attitude seemed to be: quit complaining, we’re all being spied on or you are the ones who need to be spied on. SERIOUSLY?!
This is exactly like the media’s reaction to Snowden, focus on his girlfriend and high school record and keep the elephant (I.e. megadata collection of all Americans) out of sight. In this climate nothing Muslims seem to do garners support and unity with American society. Instead of joining the struggle to reassert our civil liberties, we’re allowing ourselves to be divided and subsequently conquered. The oldest play in every politician’s playbook.
I’m not sure if we ever truly had democracy and all of our constitutional rights, but I am positive we don’t now. The most disturbing part is the apathy. The complete and total lack of dynamism. Look at Egypt. President Morsi’s only had a year to rule and already the people are making their voices heard and presence felt. Granted after only a year it’s a little much, but it keeps the ruling party on their toes!
The problem in the USA lies in our system, not any one politician. If we impeached Obama tomorrow, there’d be another puppet taking his place, making the same decisions. That’s because we allow our presidents and politicians in general, to be bribed and lobbied. In the end it is people with loads of money that make policy in Washington. Elected by “we the people” a president, congressman or senator maybe, but they are indebted and serve those who contribute to their campaigns (eh hem eh hem the Koch brothers and Park Avenue crew).
Off the top of my head I can think of a million ways those billions of campaign dollars could be used: education, healthcare, roads, social services. But how would we know who to vote for you may ask? Let’s create a new system where each candidate is allowed one pamphlet, one 5 minute speech and must debate all the other candidates, garnering votes each round until there are two left who debate for the win (The American Idol of politics if you will). And how will we fund this you ask? Tax the 1% their fair share and go after corporations like Apple that manipulate the tax code to evade taxes. Literally thought of that as I typed it folks. Needs some further work but it’s a heck of a lot better than allowing our politicians to be bought, sold and traded like a bunch of marrionettes. It would also level the playing field so that people who are neither democrats nor republicans could have a meaningful chance to compete.
Bottomline, we have to get it together and stop hating on people in exactly the same position as ourselves simply because of religion or race. While we’re down here in the fray, the people above our heads are making the decisions that are rendering life more impossible by the day. United we stand, divided we fall. Whether Taoist, Black, Brahman, Hispanic, Muslim or Chinese, no one likes to hit the ground. Let’s be mad at the right people (the stinking politicians) and channel that anger into productivity to alter our future. For if their is to be a future, we must change. Quite simply, this is unsustainable.
“Once more into the fray
Into the last good fight I’ll ever know
Live or die on this day
Live or die on this day.”
-Joe Carnahan
JAK & Peace,
Christen
