good stuff.

this isn't my material; a good friend of mine posted this on his blog. i just thought it was well-written and it conveyed my opinions exactly. read with care.

"War on Terror" Propaganda

I caught a television ad this weekend that just blew me away. It’s this little girl or boy (I can’t remember, nor does it really matter) and they asking questions like, “What will happen if I’m at soccer practice? Will you come and find me? Will we be safe?” Then a voiceover comes on saying something like “Please have a plan in case of a terrorist attack.” This is in reference to what will happen if one happens again? “Will you come and find me?” *insert scared little child here*

This made me absolutely ill. This is propaganda! This is a conscious effort by the United States government to manipulate our perceptions of the “War on Terror.” These commercials come at a time when news channels across the U.S. are reporting that “planned terrorist attacks are imminent”. How do these news channels get this information? You already know the answer. Our government. That’s pretty convenient, as Bush’s approval rating plummets below 35% and Congress is calling for an immediate withdrawal of troops from Iraq. The success or failure of this “War on Terror” is be directly related to the success or failure of George W. Bush. He knows it, his advisors know it, and well, everyone should know it that has even half of a clue. Maybe that means George W. doesn’t actually know it...but that’s beside the point.

Since September 11th, 2001 we as Americans have lived in fear of these “terrorist attacks”. What happened that day was a tragedy. Only the second unprovoked attack (well, that’s what some consider it; unprovoked) in U.S. history. Nearly 3,000 innocent people lost their lives for simply living them. Since that day, we have been nonchalantly pushed to never forget that terror looms in the distance. Vendors pop up all over to take advantage of 3,000 dead people by selling trendy American flags and magnets. Every time you go to an airport, you remember just how much terrorist hate our freedom. As the newest report of 6 dead Marines from a bombing in Iraq hit the local news stations, you remember that planes into buildings started it all. The U.S. Government has developed a color-coded system for terror alert. News channels report new findings of terrorist plans every few months. All of the above, just to make sure we don’t forget what terror really is. But until now, the United States Government has never blatantly tried to strike fear into their citizen’s hearts. Scared of terror? Well, we better keep troops in their places. This isn’t rocket science here. *insert scared child here* “Will you come find me?”

Maybe there is a terrorist plan for an act against the U.S. I’m not saying there isn’t. I’m not saying I want a terrorist act on the U.S. either. Not at all. I’m definitely not saying that being prepared for an attack is stupid. I’m not even saying that having that thought in our head sometimes is bad. All I am saying here is that scaring us is wrong. Nazi’s did this in Germany. They scared people into obedience and acceptance by spreading propaganda on radios, signs, and even dropping flyers from planes. And now, our government is doing it too, by using an even more widespread media type.

Sometimes, I wish I just made this stuff up. I wish I didn’t have to face the reality that we live in today. Talk hard people. And don’t believe everything you see.

thanks, evanreal. brilliant.