Terrorist Acts in the Media
Let’s talk a little bit about terrorism, shall we? It’s one of those hotbed topics, and has been since 11 September 2001. Whether we’re talking about actual instances of using terror to achieve one’s ends or using the term as something synonymous with “un-American” (a term that comes in and out of favor with the same regularity as some fashion trends), it’s nearly impossible to go a day without hearing the word. For quite some time, it was equally impossible to see a day go by without hearing about someone or another who was accused of terrorism, suspected of terrorism, detained for terrorism – from everything from sticking explosives in shoes to writing anti-Bush remarks on a personal blog.
Grey is the new black. Liberals are the new terrorists. We’re called terrorists or unpatriotic or un-American every time we disagree with the war in Iraq, with the treatment of prisoners in Abu Ghraib, with the stripping of rights of detainees in Guantanamo Bay. When disagreeing with the current administration, we’re told that we hate America, that we hate freedom, that we don’t appreciate what soldiers now and in the past have sacrificed for us.
Bill Maher called bombing countries from 2,000 miles away “cowardly” and was required to apologize by White House officials. Yet Bill O’Reilly can say this with no rebuke:
Hey, you know, if you want to ban military recruiting, fine, but I’m not going to give you another nickel of federal money. You know, if I’m the president of the United States, I walk right into Union Square, I set up my little presidential podium, and I say, “Listen, citizens of San Francisco, if you vote against military recruiting, you’re not going to get another nickel in federal funds. Fine. You want to be your own country? Go right ahead.”
And if Al Qaeda comes in here and blows you up, we’re not going to do anything about it. We’re going to say, look, every other place in America is off limits to you, except San Francisco. You want to blow up the Coit Tower? Go ahead.
This man is advocating Al Qaeda violence against the United States, actually waving a state landmark in the faces of known terrorists and telling them to blow it up, and this is not terrorism? This is not a terrorist act? This is not worthy of White House criticism or admonishment from the FBI or anything? Tell me how this can be true!
I am a huge fan of freedom of speech and honestly think Bill O’Reilly should be able to say whatever he wants, on his radio programs or in the privacy of his own home. But I think it’s high time we as a nation recognize his inappropriate comments for what they are, and investigate and/or prosecute properly.
If I got on the radio and begged Al Qaeda to blow up the Empire State Building, how quickly do you think I would be arrested?