I’ve never lost an argument with myself. It’s truly remarkable, when there is no opposition to my opinion and no one to challenge my points, I am thoroughly dominant in the adversarial arena.
A redundant assertion for sure. Of course it’s impossible to lose an argument with only one viewpoint, so why is this relevant?
Because the patriotically censored bile spewing from major Western media outlets since September 11 is a cacophonous chorus of conformity. The war in Afghanistan is treated as a foregone conclusion, as if there was no choice but to pummel a foreign state as punishment for the suspected actions of some of its residents.
The entire campaign is justified as an attack on those who harbour Osama bin Laden, a man the American government blames for the heinous attacks. But what proof do we have that he is responsible? The American government claims to have incontrovertible evidence, while many world leaders nod and say yes, they’ve seen it too.
Is this is all it takes to sway public opinion? Do elected officials just need say "this is how it is, trust me" and we’ll take it as fact?
If so, why was Bill Clinton publicly crucified for his sexual escapades, even when he said he didn’t do it? And why are repeated assurances the economy isn’t in rough shape greeted with mocking cynicism? We’ve never taken politicians at face value before and we’ve always had a healthy dose of skepticism. So why trust them now, when the lives of thousands hang in the balance?
And where are the voices demanding the evidence, the rumoured proof of bin Laden’s guilt? They have been silenced, along with anyone else publicly criticizing the war, criticizing the rhetoric of the Bush administration or criticizing anything American.
A well publicized example of this were comments made by Bill Maher on his late night socio-political talk show Politically Incorrect shortly after American bombs started falling on Afghanistan.
"We have been the cowards," he said, reversing the Bush administration’s common classification of the September 11 attackers. "Lobbing cruise missiles from 2,000 miles away, that’s cowardly."
Maher’s program lost over a dozen advertisers as a result of his comments because he didn’t toe the party line. While most of these companies came back on board following an official apology, this widespread economic sanctioning of free thought and free speech is repulsive.
In a war where the virtues of freedom, democracy and respect for our fellow human beings are trumpeted and lauded by those currently on the offensive, the hypocrisy is troubling. Silencing voices of dissent is not what the righteous Western democracies claim to stand for–in fact, they have actually demonized these activities for years. In this time of crisis it seems their true colours are shining through.