Hello, Habib and others.  While I maintain that America has the right to defend itself and to also pursue and find out who was behind the attacks of September 11, there are some things that trouble me...
     First of all, many men who are of Middle Eastern descent or are Muslim are being detained.  The government will not say who they are, why the are being held, and they won't even let these men have access to lawyers or to talk to their families.  How can we say we are fighting for freedom when it seems we are ourselves being hypocritical.  Why does it seem so bad when President Jammeh of The Gambia is holding people in jail for no good reason, but it is OK for America to do it because "we are fighting for freedom".  if it is wrong for one it is wrong for all...  America can't just be given a free license to do whatever it wants just because we have the most money or military might.
     Also, If President Bush thinks that this is not a war against Islam, then maybe he should ask his own Attorney-General John Ashcroft why he said "Christianity is a faith where God sent his son to die for you, Islam is a religion where you send your son to die for Him", or something to that affect.  I have gotten a couple of emails about that.  A columnist named Cal Thomas printed those comments in one of his columns.  People in the Justice Department have said that Ashcroft did not say these things, and it is possible Cal Thomas got it wrong.  However, where did Thomas get this statement if Ashcroft didn't say it?  And since many things that Ashcroft is doing in the fight against terrorism tend to have more of an affect on Muslims than anyone else, shouldn't he himself come out and do what he can to assure Muslims that he indeed didn't make these statements?
     Because if he indeed said these things, and if he believes this, how then is what he does going to unfairly impact Muslims living in this country?
     All I am saying is that if this was any other country except America, everyone would be up in arms about how we are treating detainees both in Cuba and here in the US.  
    I guess that was why I brought President Jammeh up as an example.  If it is wrong for him to trample on the rights of the people of The Gambia, than it is just as wrong for President Bush to trample on the rights of innocent people here in the US as well. 
      And maybe I am going off in a different direction than what was intended here.  And I don't mean to offend anyone.  But I think in America's rush to find Ben-Ladin and those responsible for the events of 9-11, a lot of innocent people are getting caught up, and America doesn't seem to care about that.  I feel they have already decided who is guilty and who isn't and it doesn't matter if they have the evidence or not.  This "war on terrorism" is just an excuse for America to go after anyone who isn't blindly supporting them or their policies as they relate to the rest of the world.  Protecting your interests are one thing, but violating human rights, subverting the American Constitution and democratic rights in freedoms here at home, as well as using terrorism to fight terrorism, is not the way to go either...
     I think we also have to remember that a lot of the countries we are going after are supposedly harboring people we once considered essential to our interests at the time.  Ben-Ladin and Saddam Hussein are examples.  
     What troubles me is that there seems to be no clear objective or an end to this.  Where does it all end?  Americans and others can think it is OK to keep the detainees in Cuba in open cages like animals, but what happens when and if the US government decides to take that a step further and start treating their own citizens in this manner?  
     In the new terrorism legislation that was recently passed, any group for any reason can be classified as a terrorist organization.  Suffice it to say that it seems that Americans are not really thinking critically, and what happens when the legislation meant to keep them safe and protect them from attacks like what happened on 9-11, turns right around and instead of protecting them, takes away the very freedom that this war on terrorism is supposed to be protecting?
     I have seen a lot of people make references to the book 1984 by George Orwell, and I am seriously considering rereading that book.
     OK, I am going now.  The more I write the more I think of writing...  Again, I reiterate that these are just my thoguhts, just musings, nothing more.  And I ofcourse could be completely wrong.  But I think everyone should remain vigilant, especially immigrant communities.  If it is Arabs and people from the Middle East today, how do you know it won't be you tomorrow, or me the next day?  Of course, I am referring to those of us living in the US.  I am not sure how the situation is anywhere else.  But if we can agree that the US has used double standards in the past, they will most certainly use them again, especially now.  
OK, tht is all for now...
Hopefully, I did not offend anyone, and my apologies in advance if I did...
Ginny
   
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