It's a mantra these days to say that 9-11 was "an attack on our freedom." Of course the terrorists didn't succeed in taking away our freedom -- at least not initially. But in the process reacting to the attacks of September 11, I think the goverment has turned the attacks into that very thing -- a threat to freedom. The goverment did what no terrorist could ever accomplish -- the Patriot Act takes away real freedom.
I'm talking about an assault on the basic legal freedoms that people in democratic countries enjoy. Magna Charta stuff. The right to a lawyer. The right to a fair trial. The administration has certainly put a lot of energy into efforts that would deny even American citizens these basic rights. Relative to so many other actions the administration won't take or can't seem to accomplish, I don't see that we're any more secure now that Americans have lost some of their basic rights. Randall Hamud asks what this means for the country he loves. My Turn: We’re Fighting Terror, But Killing Freedom
