The Terrorists Have Won

The terrorists have won...and you can't deny it.

Sure, many of you out there will argue the point, but the fact is, they won. I knew this back in late 2001, the first time I had to show my ID to enter a building. I was downtown, taking a client to a doctor's appointment. There were no government offices in the building. On the ground floor there were a few shops, and upstairs there were offices: doctors, accountants, a photographer, but no government offices. Still, as we entered the lobby, my client and I were stopped by security and asked for our identification just to enter the building.

Of course, I had my driver's license with me...no problem there. My client, on the other hand, had no ID on him. Luckily, I had some paperwork on him and assumed responsibility for vouching for his identification. I remember being confused, irritated and downright angry to be asked for our "papers". I felt like I was in a bad World War 2 movie! "Papers please!", I could imagine hearing some Nazi officer demand.

Here it is, 12 years later. I, like many others, am unemployed/underemployed. Due to the rampant paranoia that this country now exists in, I can't get past a job interview, regardless of how qualified I am or how well the interview goes, without a background check. Yes, I have a misdemeanor for simple assault on my record. My credit is shot, thanks to 7 years of not being allowed to work. (OK, I had a job that I enjoyed for 2 years of that...but our governor cut funding, so that job is gone, gone, gone and crying won't bring it back) Hell, I can't even get hired at McDonald's...and yes, I've applied there. People are frightened and paranoid and will use any excuse to deem others a threat. That's what its come to. Background checks for a weapon make sense. No one wants an angry, unstable person to run around with a gun...regardless of whether or not they think it's their God-given right. If you're trying to borrow money, it makes sense to see if you're able to and/or likely to pay it back. Other than that, background checks are a tool used to divide and conquer. And trust me...this system is far from full proof...or foolproof.

I have to go into various buildings downtown on a regular basis. I am often asked for my ID and often have to walk through a metal detector. This has become commonplace. Hell, a lot of schools have them now. In some buildings, I am also photographed prior to admittance. This photo is then printed on to a sticker that states my name, what time I entered the building, the date, and where I'm going in the building. Can you say overkill? Am I the only one who thinks the world has gone mad?

The police, shortly after 9/11, adopted a paramilitary mindset. Cops used to be pretty much normal guys (and gals), who just happened to have a job that required wearing a badge and carrying a gun. Nowadays, they mostly all have buzz cuts, and are ready to draw their weapon without ample reason. They have become our own little Gestapo. Sure, their job is hard...but no one forced them to become cops. Sadly, these days. those that do become cops tend to be the old schoolyard bullies of days gone by. This wasn't always the case...but it sure seems to be now.

Look around you. Look in the mirror. Chances are you and most of the people you know are scared...scared of something...something you all shouldn't be. You're scared of the threat of the boogey man. I'm sure you'll deny it...but your actions speak louder than your words ever will. Black, white, straight, gay, Christian, Jew, Muslim, Taoist, Mormon, Atheist, Agnostic...it doesn't matter. If someone isn't just like you, there's someone out there telling you to be afraid of those who might be different. And most of you fall for it.

This country has allowed itself to be divided. Obviously, no one remembers what we were taught in grade school: United We Stand, Divided We Fall. The way things are going, the fall is imminent. It's become an Us vs Them mentality...mostly based on fear and hate.

We allow ourselves to believe the propaganda...all cleverly designed to divide and conquer. This side is better than that side. It's all bullshit. Record profits are being raked in, yet the price of everything keeps going up and up. This is reality. Excuses are made but the deal is done.

All it takes now is the mere threat of a terrorist attack, and our collective sphincter tightens. Conspiracy theorists say that it's all by our own design. It doesn't matter. Whoever designed this mess was a genius...because it worked. Diversion after diversion keeps our eyes off of the real problems. Money is being made and it's being made at the expense of our brothers and sisters. Those of us (an ever growing number) who are poor are sometimes called "lazy" and "beggars" and "parasites".  I think I can speak for everyone when I say that no one wants to be poor. I spent decades working 60 hour weeks on average. I would love to go back to that. I spend more time looking for a job than most of you probably spend working your job. Do I get any help? No. I'm now written off. I'm no longer even a statistic...and I'm OK with that. I have what I need.

I'm sure that some of you will read this and agree with some or all of these points...but you'll never do anything about it. You won't write your congressman. You won't complain to anyone. You'll sit back, afraid to do anything. Afraid that you'll wind up jobless, poor, and off the grid. You're afraid of the unknown.

The worst part is this: the enemy is in plain sight. It's not the terrorists. They don't even count anymore. They already won. They wanted to scare us...and they did. But something worse has taken their place. Evil, greedy people who want control. They don't even bother to dangle a carrot in front of our eyes anymore. They've found that it's easier to keep us scared. Scared people rarely do much except what they're told to do. What they're expected to do.

There will never be a change. No civil war. Most people are too afraid to act out. The few that even think about it don't bother to think it through. There are the gun nuts who are afraid the boogey man will take their guns, so they post videos of them firing their weapons and hooting & hollering like morons. They're more afraid than anyone...because they fear someone taking away their toys. That's all that is. There are the so-called progressives who rant and rave about doing things that make common sense. But...their thunder is diminished by simply calling them Liberals. "Buncha damned bleeding heart liberals...." Guess what kids...we have become our parents.

Yes, the terrorists won. They won a long time ago. They've become a moot point. A terrorist would need 2 forms of ID to do anything in this county. We have a far worse enemy now. Ourselves.