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The Outpost WebLog - 2003 What's goin' 'round and comin' down... Dan Murphy

December 6, 2003 I was listening to an old music mix the other day, and the song "With God On Our Side" came up. Amazing, really. Dylan wrote that in the early 1960's, and he was just saying the same thing that many philosophers and spiritual leaders have said for two thousand years. Unfortunately, I see hardly anyone with that awareness and with national visibility in our society today. A bit later, as sometimes happens, some additional words dropped out of the universe into my head: And now in Iraq there's blood being shed, To find massive weapons the President said. The President told us, but the President lied. And still it's OK 'cause God's on our side. And while I'm at it, I think I'll sing the original last verse like this from now on:         Now that I'm leavin', I'm weary as hell.         The confusion I'm feelin', there's no tongue can tell,         The words fill my head and they fall to the floor,         If God is on our side, we'll stop the next war. (©1963 - Special Rider Music) Send comments. October 23, 2003 US District Court Judge William Young made the following statement in sentencing "shoe bomber" Richard Reid to prison.  United States vs. Reid. Judge Young: On counts 1, 5 and 6 the Court sentences you to life in prison in the custody of the United States Attorney General. We are not afraid of any of your terrorist coconspirators, Mr. Reid. We are Americans. We have been through the fire before. There is all too much war talk here. And I say that to everyone with the utmost respect. It seems to me you hate the one thing that is most precious. You hate our freedom. Our individual freedom. Our individual freedom to live as we choose, to come and go as we choose, to believe or not believe as we individually choose. Amen to that! I hope everyone, including most especially the highest ranking members of the current administration, do hear what the judge had to say about individual freedom. Because, ever since 9/11/01, some of these leader have been attacking our individual freedoms in the name of 'security'. We have nothing to fear from external threats such as Richard Reid. Yes, they got us on 9/11/01. How many people have died from external terrorist attacks on US soil since then? Zero. How many have suffered incarceration or other losses of individual freedom since 9/11/01 because of our government's reaction? Thousands probably, but we can't know for sure because so much is now done in secret. Helen Keller said, "Security is mostly an illusion." FDR said, "We have nothing to fear but fear itself." It is "fear itself" that has led to the excesses of the "Patroit Act" and the surrender, willingly or unwillingly, of more and more secret police power to the government. In pursuit of the illusion of security, millions of citizens allow the government to abridge individual freedoms. Read again what the judge said about Richard Reid -- he and his co-conspirators hate our individual freedoms. That's what motivates their actions. They can never succeed directly. What our government is doing in reaction to the fear they have engendered is carrying on their mission. It was Thomas Jefferson who said, "The price of freedom is eternal vigilance." Indeed. The one truly important thing that we needed to do to prevent another 9/11 was accomplished on that very day. It was accomplished in time to keep the fourth airliner from reaching its intended target. It was when we learned that we must all be vigilant and prepared to act in our own defense. All the sky marshals and wiretappers the government can hire will not prevent another 9/11. A population of aware individuals will. The rest is secondary. Have there been other attempts? Yes! Richard Reid was one of them. However, other passengers on that flight wrestled his ass to the floor. Send comments.