I go through life in a semi-oblivious state trying to do the best I can with what I've got, paying more attention to local weather and the price of bananas than to the over-emphasized hype regarding politics, sports, and Kardashians that the media throws at me. So I'm not politically savvy, not by a long shot.
But I've read a good deal of history, and I have a pretty good sense of what our Founding Fathers were trying to do when they set us apart from England and established us as a country. They were all about us being independent. I love that. I get that.
Now no man and no country are complete in and of themselves, so even in an independent state there must be relationships. For a government, that's foreign policy but it's also internal domestic affairs, the government's relationship with its own people. As Americans, we have certain rights guaranteed to us by our Constitution and Bill of Rights and for the most part, I trust that my government understands these rights and continues to uphold them on my behalf.
Now I'm not so sure.
Lena from my Writer's Group blogged about the NDAA. I knew nothing about this new law since, as I said, I'm not politically savvy. Plus, my news sources are the local TV channels and the Scranton Times, not exactly world-class information. When I scouted around about what the NDAA is, here's what I found out.
NY Times article
Forbes article
In a nutshell, our government has authorized the US military to detain a US citizen without charges, even on our own soil. Obama says he will never abuse the power this gives him. God help us all.
Even folks with a strong military background object to the potential for abuse that this law provides. Two 4-star generals talk about the NDAA
The overall message is clear - we as a country are on the blade of a knife.
The NDAA which went into effect while we all celebrated the holidays is terrifying step toward a police state. I'm not exaggerating when I say that these same steps have taken place in other countries - Iraq, and 1930s Germany come to mind immediately.
I'll continue to speak my mind because I couldn't live with myself if I didn't. Somebody watch my back.
I'll be writing about this same subject soon as I was watching unfold along with the SOPA law trying to be pushed through. Both infringing upon our rights and both dangerously freedom-inhibiting. Orwell, here we come.
ReplyDeleteThe risk and potential for abuse are horrifying indeed, Dale. When I started researching my novel, I wanted to understand what signs the German people may have seen before the war, signs that they ignored or were too busy to really worry about. This law is exactly that sort of sign, an act that can potentially usurp all our rights. Can what happened to them happen to us too? If we close our eyes, maybe.
ReplyDeleteI'm really glad my blog helped to inspire this. I hope you continue to write more about it. I really think since cable news and major media is not addressing it, anyone who can spread the truth about it should!
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely. I want to be able to say what Sophie said. "I have done what I could."
ReplyDeleteI've got your back. Ten years ago when the government pushed through the so-called"Patriot" Act, I feared it was only the beginning.
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