Terrorist victory in the UK

[unixronin]

Yeah, you heard me right:  Terrorist victory.

What victory?

This one.  In the UK as in the US, terrorists have not cowed the people, who are for the most part standing there with defiance on their faces and "Bring it on, you miserable cowards!" on their lips.  But they have cowed the government.

Civil liberties may have to be "eroded" to protect Britons from terrorism, the head of security service MI5 has said.

[...]

[Dame Eliza Manningham-Buller, head of MI5] said civil liberties were valued and there was no wish to damage those "hard-fought for" rights.

"But the world has changed and there needs to be a debate on whether some erosion of what we all value may be necessary to improve the chances of our citizens not being blown apart as they go about their daily lives," she said.

In the US, four years ago this day, a successful terror attack shocked the nation ... and the government caved, and did exactly what the terorrists wanted:  It took away freedoms and liberties from the American people that the terrorists could not possibly ever take away by themselves.  Now it looks as though the July 7 bombings in London may have achieved the same end in the UK.

Are our governments just too STUPID to see what's happening?  Or is it just that they and the terrorists are playing perfectly into each other's hands?

Comments

[sierra-nevada.livejournal.com]

There is always a cadre of power/control freaks who want to run a police state in which behavior is precisely proscribed by Law (which they write without limit).

They hate unfettered liberty. People do all kinds of messy things with it.

They hate civil rights and the ability of a sovereign individual to tell government officials to sod off.

They seek all opportunities to increase the government's (i.e. their) power.

All terrorist incidents give these assholes the ability to argue, "if you will all do exactly what we say, we will make you perfectly safe." September 11, 2001 was manna from heaven for this mindset.

Note that such individuals exist on both sides of the Left-Right political spectrum; the defining characteristic is the paternalistic attitude: "I know what's best for you."

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

Indeed.
In the words of Daniel Webster:

"Good intentions will always be pleaded for every assumption of authority.  It is hardly too strong to say that the Constitution was made to guard the people against the dangers of good intentions.  There are men in all ages who mean to govern well, but they mean to govern.  They promise to be good masters, but they mean to be masters."

[jmkelly.livejournal.com]

Good quote. In exchange, here's one from John Adams:

"Power always sincerely, conscientiously, de trés bon Foi, believes itself Right. Power always thinks it has a great Soul, and vast Views, beyond the comprehension of the weak; and that it is doing God service, when it is violating all his laws."

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I'm snagging that one for my quotations file.

[bbwoof.livejournal.com]

Relevant quotes, from noted thinkers:

Human beings will generally exercise power when they can get it, and they will exercise it most undoubtedly in popular governments under pretense
of public safety.
-- Daniel Webster

They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.
-- Benjamin Franklin

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

That is a new Webster quote to me. Thanks.