The Dixie Chicks, John Cougar, Michael Moore. All have been called traitors, unpatriotic, and terrorists by many. It seems that once the war in Iraq started no one was allowed to say anything 'bad' about the President of the United States, well at least not there. We (Canadians) have called him everything from a 'moron', to the biggest threat to the world since Hitler. Although I would not go as far as the latter, I do think that there was a dangerous precedent set when the bombs started falling on Baghdad. Pre-emptive war. Since the end of the Cold War, it seemed, the US was no longer going to be an aggressor. Kosovo was about helping people, and stabilizing a region. Somalia was supposed to be the same thing (although much more complicated). People around the world spoke out loudly. What does this have to do with al-queda? What does this do to 'get Osama Bin Laden? Bush and Blair both said that Saddam Hussein had nothing to do with "the September 11th". It was about... WMDs, Freeing people, gosh he's a bad guy, etc....
So when the war started people were saying stuff like 'you must support the president at a time of crisis/war'. ' To speak out against the war is unpatriotic'. 'To criticize is not supporting our troops'. 'dissenters are Traitors'. Not since the McCarthy era has the US been so anti-free speech. What happened to their first amendment?
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. "
I guess it says congress, but it seemed to become a national pastime to call dissenters treasonous... Or to shut up!
To an Anti-War Protester Whose Father Died on 9/11 - Feb. 4, 2003
O'Reilly: "Shut up. Shut up."
Jeremy Glick: "Oh, please don't tell me to shut up."
O'Reilly: "As respectas respectin respect for your father, who was a Port Authority worker, a fine American, who got killed unnecessarily by barbarians"
Glick: "By radical extremists who were trained by this government"
O'Reilly: "Out of respect for him"
Glick: "not the people of America."
O'Reilly: "I'm not going to"
Glick: "the people of the ruling class, the small minority."
O'Reilly: "Cut his mic. I'm not going to dress you down anymore, out of respect for your father. We will be back in a moment with more of The Factor."
Glick: "That means we're done?"
O'Reilly: "We're done."
Now what?
Apart from the war being a disaster and have killed over 10,000 Iraqis and over 1000 non Iraqis (coalition of the 'willing' and the contractors sent to give Iraqi jobs to Americans or to serve as vigilantes for the US government) have died. Despite the clear failure of the US government to 'free' Iraq or bring Bin Laden to 'justice' Fahrenheit 9/11 came out amid some staunch controversy.
In fact there have been some vile responses:
http://lp.org/press/archive.php?Function=view&record=664
http://www.renewamerica.us/columns/alvarez/040706
But is Freedom of Speech going to return? Well I'm happy to report that the PABAAH Website (an organization that wants you to boycott movies because certain stars have spoken out against the US president) has bee hacked! Yes, if you go there now you will be told: "You are an Idiot". I wouldn't recommend checking it out.
However, it seems most Americans how disagree are being very quiet about it. A Canadian recently experienced his:
http://www.commondreams.org/cgi-bin/print.cgi?file=/views04/0726-12.htm
And at the DNC there is controversy over the Free Speech Zone:
http://nyc.indymedia.org/feature/display/98452/index.php
http://baltimorechronicle.com/052704FreeSpeechZones.shtml
I guess Free Speech is returning to America, one zone at a time... Too bad they have forgotten that Free Speech has been an intergral part of their history, and they must continue to fight for it. I think Theodore Roosevelt's famous quote outlines the true meaning of the First amendment.
"To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that we are to stand by the president right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public." -- Theodore Roosevelt
