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| Terror Networks |
| Are you a terrorist? |
| 2007-05-15 |
| TV, radio and newspapers from all over the world often linger on the costs of terrorism, but what is not so often mentioned are the costs of the fight to terrorism. While dealing with such costs, we do not refer to how much money were spent to set up proper countermeasures against terrorist attacks, but to the consequences of a sort of Hysteria that affected whole western society from September 11th on. Terrorism is undoubtedly a threat that must be fought with all means, but we should take care to avoid that this state of alert will turn us into witch hunters, and we should prevent the fear of terrorism from damaging us much more than terrorism itself. Need some examples? Earlier this year, specifically on January 4th, the CNN apologized after mistakenly putting the name of US Senator Barack Obama as a caption on a story about Osama Bin Laden. Senator Obama did not make objection about the fact that it had been just an innocent slip and the whole issue should have been soon forgotten. But it has not, and an rumor spread out in streets and on-line forums: Barack Obama is a secret Muslim and eventually a jihad sympathizer . Obviously, there’s nothing wrong in being a Muslim but, for a candidate to US presidential elections a similar rumour, worsened by Jihadist suspicions, could mean a political collapse.The most common hysteria among people, anyway, is linked to terrorists detection. As any form of “witch hunt”, it is based on the principle that anyone could potentially be a terrorist until he or she proves his or her innocence. The situation is definitely worth noticing in the USA, where citizens are particularly vulnerable to similar problems and authorities are very effective in putting regulations on anything that can be regulated. For instance, some years ago the FBI distributed a brochure to local enforcement agencies in Phoenix, Arizona (page 1 and page 2 ). The brochure includes a list of suspicious activities , but actually, things such as “request authorities for a stop”, “make numerous references to the US Constitution”, “defend the US Constitution”, “drive without driving licence” and even “claim that driving is a right and not a privilege”, seem to be very far from a “terrorist behaviour”. Moreover, States such as Alabama and Arizona published a series of tips and advices to better recognize terrorist activities, in order to report them to authorities. According to such vade-mecum, if you say that “the Constitution has been subverted” , if you “advocate for property rights” or if you believe in “Marxist” philosophy… then you might be a domestic terrorist and your name could be soon added to the Terrorist Screening Database . Maybe, what the brochure and governmental websites are referring to, is just a list of general behaviours that, if associated to violence or specific activities, could characterize a potential terrorist. But people is not so wise, and the risk to be transformed into a horde of bounty-hunters is verisimilar, because according to the lists we quoted above, there are few people who could say they are not terrorists. For incredulous readers: we found a quiz that could help you in making up your mind. It is just a joke and there’s nothing institutional in it, but it is based on the characteristics listed as “terrorists’ behaviours” by US authorities.. Enjoy it and let us know your personal score! |
| Posted by:Delphi2005 |
| #14 50% - probably shudna admitted to the WMD.... |
| Posted by: Rupert Unorong5987 2007-05-15 22:44 |
| #13 I hit 25% and got the same message as Shipman #11. I guess that means no Black Helicopters looking for me and phone taps. YeeHah! |
| Posted by: Delphi2005 2007-05-15 20:32 |
| #12 we should prevent the fear of terrorism from damaging us much more than terrorism itself. Wrong. Disregarding even one iota of Islamic terrorismÂ’s threat is far more dangerous. Obviously, thereÂ’s nothing wrong in being a Muslim Wrong again. Muslims are proponents of the worldÂ’s most intolerant creed and must be called on it at all times. Their support for a violent political ideology makes them the enemy of all free people. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2007-05-15 20:14 |
| #11 You are not a terrorist. In fact, it is highly likely that you are a socialist, communist, or Democrat. You strongly support the state over, well, everything. You likely do not believe in any individual rights. You scare me. It was the driving without a licesnse and the ownership of WMD that put me in the hole. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2007-05-15 19:06 |
| #10 Oh, and it set my clock back exactly 1 hour as well. |
| Posted by: FOTSGreg 2007-05-15 18:29 |
| #9 3dc, I got exactly the same thing and I said yes: I've driven without a licence. |
| Posted by: gromgoru 2007-05-15 18:27 |
| #8 Your score is 60% Congratulations, you are a domestic terrorist. Well, at least you are according to the US government. Consider turning yourself in to your local authorities. There are FBI offices all around they country and they would like to talk to you. Pack your bags for Gitmo because the government doesn't like you. Yee Ha! |
| Posted by: FOTSGreg 2007-05-15 18:26 |
| #7 Your score is 35% You are not much of a terrorist. In fact, you really like the state. You probably dislike personal responsibility and have a strong distrust of other people to do the right thing. You think freedom should only be given by the state to people who agree with the state. All that for never needing to drive with a fake license or use one? This test is written by some kid who isn't old enough to drink. Hell when I was an underage kid (back when the drinking age was 18) I got my booze the old fashion way... making friends of kids whose parents owned taverns or liquor stores. Then it was drive down the back alley and load the car up with free booze and the friend. And make sure one of your friends had a farming driving license that let him drive the car at 14 years old.... Sheesh... where are these kids with imagination.... Another good technique was to asked the old man who bought a pint of peppermint schnapps and an icecream cone everyday. Hell for buying the icecream cone he would buy what you wanted with the schnapps - and this when you were just 14. |
| Posted by: 3dc 2007-05-15 16:58 |
| #6 Sorry busted link Link |
| Posted by: Delphi2005 2007-05-15 15:59 |
| #5 I was checking over on digg.com and found this related story. "seems that quoting the constitution is "suspect" in Pennsylvania, too" Link |
| Posted by: Delphi2005 2007-05-15 15:49 |
| #4 After I wrote the above I found that the timezone on my computer clock had been set to "Moscow". This does not require root privileges. So after a couple of reboots and a cookie clearing I went back and tried the quiz again. I answered no to every question and there were no smart-ass remarks. Then I put in my original answer, but so far my time zone has stayed where it is. This happens occasionally, where I change a setting without meaning to, but it's still kinda weird. ...if you believe in “Marxist” philosophy...then you might be a domestic terrorist... Yes? And? Note, by the way, that this was not written by a native English speaker. Another sign of terrorism! |
| Posted by: Angie Schultz 2007-05-15 15:21 |
| #3 I took the quiz and got 25%. Smells like bull$hit to me. You are not a terrorist. In fact, it is highly likely that you are a socialist, communist, or Democrat. You strongly support the state over, well, everything. You likely do not believe in any individual rights. You scare me. |
| Posted by: Deacon Blues 2007-05-15 15:09 |
#2 I took their little quiz and got 45%:
Three of the twenty questions were about whether I think it's OK for the state to license cars and drivers. I conclude that this site is for the kind of pallid geeks who think they're 1337. They'd be terrorists except it conflicts with their wargaming schedules. |
| Posted by: Angie Schultz 2007-05-15 14:51 |
| #1 Obviously, thereÂ’s nothing wrong in being a Muslim but, ... Wrong. |
| Posted by: Excalibur 2007-05-15 14:36 |