By DR. LARRY MOSES
No one asked me but… There are a number of issues with the Boston bombing that come to mind.
First, in this case, the mass media did not jump to a quick conclusion that a white supremist was to blame. If you will recall that was the early false claim at both the shootings in Arizona and Colorado. Those two shootings were the work of madmen with no real political agenda.
The media was quick to say that the shooting of the assistant district attorney and the district attorney and his wife in Texas was the work of the Aryan Brotherhood. Don’t get me wrong; I believe the Aryan Brotherhood is capable of this type of act. However, it turns out that the shooting in Texas was done by a disgruntled justice of the peace who had been convicted of theft and prosecuted by his victims. The media often seems anxious to tie any act of violence to the extreme right and they will react without evidence.
While I would not suggest that it is never good to speculate about terrorist and their motives, it is interesting that the media has been cautioning everyone to not speculate as to motives in this case. It appears that it is much more likely these two brothers are Muslim extremist than Tea Partiers. What connection do these men have with the Muslim jihad? This early in the case I have no idea but I find it interesting that there has been, up to now, a major effort by the media to not mention the possibility. This may be confirmed or disproved by the time you read this column.
Another issue I found interesting is the amount of surveillance the people of Boston are under as they go about their daily life. This street surveillance provided a video of the complete act.
It apparently is commonplace for the people of Boston to be under complete surveillance by their governing body. In one of the most liberal cities in one of the most liberal states in America, this degree of surveillance should not come as a surprise. If you are going to live under the nanny state, the nanny apparently has a right to monitor your entire life.
This incident out of Boston brings to my mind George Orwell’s book 1984. The telescreens in 1984 both sent and received images, acting as a security camera in every living room. While the T.V. cannot serve this purpose, the home PC, which many people always leave on, can.
Laptops and computer monitors with built-in webcams are evident in many homes today. Parents set up webcams to monitor their children at home while they work. But those images can be monitored by others as well.
We live in a world where we are often under surveillance of one kind or another. There is a Colorado turnpike outside Denver where a picture of your vehicle is taken and then you are sent a bill for the use of the road. There are cameras at intersections to observe your driving habits. Whether it is the cameras on the street or the cameras in the Target parking lot, American people are being watched almost continually. People have come to accept these cameras because they are for their protection. One can only hope that this protection does not come at a loss to freedom.
It took the FBI less than forty-eight hours to track the bombers in Boston using video surveillance cameras on the street. People are rejoicing over the FBI’s ability to identify and confront these young men so quickly.
One must understand that the video was not the only information they had. The FBI has the capability of reviewing every cell phone call in America. In this case the FBI limited this electronic search to a radius around Boston. However, you may want to be careful what you say on the phone, Big Brother can listen anywhere.
They reviewed every Facebook entry and every e-mail sent in the Boston area. That was done without a warrant. While you may applaud the results, are you sure you are comfortable with the method. While we are all glad this ordeal is over, are we happy with the constitutional violations that took place? This was a mass violation of the Fourth Amendment rights of those whose social media entries were collected and read.
As a reminder to those of you who are okay with this, the Fourth Amendment states: “The right of the people to be secure in person, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”
This amendment was designed to prevent the very thing that happened in Boston last week. It prohibits the government from oppressing innocent people to punish the guilty.
You may think you are safe from surveillance in your own home. But anytime you have your cell phone in your pocket, you can be monitored. The GPS on your phone can not only tell someone what house you are in but the room of the house in which you dwell. Each time you tweet or update your Facebook, the government can tap in and find out what you are doing at any given moment.
Another facet of this event has been the search for the younger brother designated suspect #2. After robbing a 7-11, killing an MIT police officer, highjacking a car, and having a running gun battle with police in which suspect #1 was killed, and suspect #2 escaped, Boston and all the towns nearby were shut down. People were told to cower down in their homes.
Of course, this being Massachusetts, none of the citizens could be legally armed so they had no other choice than to hide in fear in their own homes.
In 1776, the people of Boston were called to arms to oppose the most feared army in the world and they met them in the streets and drove them from the town. In 2013, the ancestors of these patriots were told to hide under their beds.
The terrorist picked the right city to attack for it is a gun free zone. It would be interesting to see how this scenario would have played out in a good old Texas town.
Thought for the day…Those who sacrifice freedom for safety deserve neither.
– Thomas Jefferson
