The weekend's 9/11 horror-fest will do Osama bin Laden's work for him

[Briar]

The weekend's 9/11 horror-fest will do Osama bin Laden's work for him

This repetitious publicity glorifies terrorism as a weapon of war, scaring us far more than the original explosions did

Simon Jenkins

Turn on the radio this week and a ghoulish voice from the bowels of the former World Trade Centre seeks to curdle your blood and chill your bones. It is yet another BBC trailer evoking the horror of the twin towers and the monster of evil, Osama bin Laden. The corporation is desperate to outdo other media outlets in their commemorations of the fifth anniversary of 9/11. They include movies by Oliver Stone and Paul Greengrass, and American and British 9/11 specials from stars such as Harvey Keitel and Kevin Costner called The Millionaire Widows, The Miracle of Staircase B, On Native Soil and numerous variants on twin towers. There are comic strips and videos and where-was-I-then memoirs. The weekend is to be wall-to-wall 9/11. Not glorifying terrorism? You must be joking.

The favourite line from the war on terror's military-industrial complex is that in 2001 Osama bin Laden "changed the rules of the game". (Forgotten is that he attacked the same target in 1993, his only error being one of civil engineering.) George Bush repeated the change thesis again on Wednesday in confirming his secret interrogation camps and excusing the five-year delay in bringing al-Qaida suspects to justice. Tony Blair cites the change with every curb on civil liberty. The "new" terrorism requires a new approach to public safety. The security industry cries amen.

Most of this is self-serving drivel. Nervous rulers have colluded with soldiers and businessmen throughout history to cite some ethnic or religious menace when needing more power and higher taxes. Political violence has become more promiscuous with suicide bombing and a consequent rise in kill rate per incident, but - as Matthew Carr shows in his book on terror, Unknown Soldiers - the change is one of degree.

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http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,1867249,00.html

[angstlessk]

1. I would love to read that, but your link produces a page 2x my screen

width, must be for 'big screen'?

[Briar]

2. Hope this is better:

http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0908-36.htm

[angstlessk]

3. Thanks so much...I could not scroll sideways to read...this is fine!

it is really a very interesting post and damning to bush. I am honored to kick and recommend!