Our government’s message is clear: be afraid. We increase airport security and tighten our borders because we’re afraid of terrorists among us. We fight in Iraq; we should be afraid of Sadaam Hussein. The next time Bush shoots his trademark squint into a TV camera and tells the country how nervous it should be, I hope we’ll all ask why.
Now may not be the most popular time to champion Michael Moore, after his vitriolic acceptance speech at the Oscars last Sunday. His film, Bowling for Columbine, had an unfortunate tendency to create facts when the actual facts did not fit the movie’s message. But Moore’s film had a valid and surprisingly profound thesis: the American government and media have created a culture of fear.
Bush did not start this trend, but he has taken it to its greatest extent so far. Since Sept. 11, the administration has pushed the American public to contradictory extremes. On the one hand, Bush encourages us to go about our daily business without fear. On the other, he gives us the threat assessment system. Right now, America is on orange alert. Can anybody tell me what the hell that means? What is the proper protocol for an ‘orange alert?’ Should I buy some extra duct tape? Presumably, when we reach the dreaded ‘red’ threat level, we should all swarm into the streets and panic.
It’s a fear meter, plain and simple. It reflects how afraid the government wants us to be. We have finally reached the point where our government can try to inspire terror in its citizens without even giving a reason.
Does Bush really want us to go about our business without fear? He and his cabinet give empty encouragement to the public but offer copious reasons every day for us to be more afraid then ever.
I’m no conspiracy theorist. I’m not even convinced that Bush and his cabinet know what they’re doing. But what am I to think when Tom Ridge say the fear meter is going up and offers only the most cursory of explanations?
The government even has a website, www.ready.gov, devoted to readiness in the face of a terrorist attack. It prominently displays the slogan, ‘Don’t be afraid … Be ready.’ Yet one page away, the site informs visitors that ‘Terrorists are working to obtain biological, chemical, nuclear and radiological weapons, and the threat of an attack is very real.’ The site also provides a helpful list of potential terrorist-induced disasters that we might face, including ‘Chemical Threat,’ ‘Radiation Threat’ and ‘Nuclear Blast.’ In the event of a nuclear blast, ready.gov advises ‘taking cover.’
Bush enjoys spinning detailed, horrific stories of terrorist attacks that might happen (see his State of the Union address). The unspoken wish inherent in his speeches, and in ready.gov, is that we will all be so mortified by the prospect of terrorist violence that we will allow Bush to do whatever he wants to ‘protect the country.’ He offers little to no practical advice for how we can protect ourselves. Bush apparently is all that stands between us and horrible death. Isn’t that convenient? As long as Bush has us worried about an unseen enemy that could strike at any time, we won’t be looking at the country’s real problems.
Our government is giving me plenty of reasons to be afraid; they just aren’t the reasons Bush would like. Another tax cut for rich Americans looms. As oil wells in Iraq begin to burn, the danger looms that we won’t even get cheap oil out of this war. Casualties mount on both sides, and every time CNN clicks off another number on the death toll, the war in Iraq seems less necessary. Anti-American sentiment grows steadily, even among countries that should be supporting us.
I’m afraid that my government is lying. What should we make of the administration’s recurring claim that the United States did everything possible to avoid war? France did everything possible to avoid war. If we really placed such importance on avoiding war, we would be standing up in the United Nations and praising the French. Instead, we’ve renamed French fries in a landmark congressional resolution that has already sent shockwaves through three diners in Alabama.
If the American public has anything to fear, it’s that our government’s foreign policies will create more terrorists. Much of the Arabic world believes that oil and religion are the motivations for the Iraq war. It doesn’t even matter if they’re right; millions of people believe it, and our government is doing nothing to convince them otherwise.
What better way to convince the Arabic world that we are not fighting a religious war than to pass a congressional resolution encouraging prayer and fasting in support of our troops? Indeed, this resolution is before the House now. How can we criticize other governments for running on religious fanaticism when our own Congress forces religion to the forefront?
My government is giving millions of people more reason to hate me and my country. That may be the best reason I’ve heard to be afraid.
[ Andy Christman, a senior in the College of Communication, is a weekly columnist for The Daily Free Press. ]