If you haven’t read the Department of Homeland Security’s report, titled Rightwing Extremism: Current Economic and Political Climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and Recruitment, you should.
It shouldn’t take longer than a moment to realize what a joke this document is in actuality. I could never have imagined that, on April 6, I went to bed an average American and woke up a right-wing extremist. I proudly admit that I am extremely conservative. I didn’t know this caused me to pose a serious threat to my beloved country.
In all likelihood, I’m not the only person who has become subject to the government’s hatred of conservatism. I agree we should be concerned with preventing all terrorist attacks, regardless of the ideology of the terrorists. It is, however, purely ridiculous to put forth the outlandish accusations made by the DHS and Secretary Janet Napolitano.
In all fairness, the report does mention some white supremacist groups which have begun paramilitary training. That sounds like something which should be included in such a report. That said, this is where all things sensible end.
If you have recently purchased significant amounts of ammunition, the government probably considers you a rightwing extremist. The same is true if you have bought guns due to recent attempts to pass gun control legislation. It couldn’t be that you wanted to buy ammunition now before prices skyrocket further or buy guns before the government legislates away your right to bear arms. You could be a right-wing extremist even if you haven’t bought guns or ammunition. You could simply have made known your disapproval of your Second Amendment rights being taken away.
Are you against abortion? If you, like me, detest the murder of the most innocent among us, you are a right-wing extremist. That bumper sticker or car tag you display about “choosing life” is nothing more than a right-wing extremist identification card.
Even better is the idea that you are a right-wing extremist if you don’t favor either Communism or Socialism and feel that the United States is giving up much of its sovereignty to the world at large. I never knew that holding a political opinion about the proper functions of government would land me the label of dangerous rightwing extremist.
The most abhorrent section of the report concerns military veterans. These are the bravest individuals among our entire population. It is to veterans that we owe a great deal of admiration and gratitude. It is sickening that the DHS would release a report which insinuates that such individuals, if disgruntled, will possibly join terrorist groups and use their superior skills to bring harm to the country for which they served. This is so outrageous because disgruntled veterans are essentially labeled as being rightwing extremists with only the example of Timothy McVeigh cited. McVeigh was certainly a nutcase, but that is exactly the point. The fact that he was a veteran, and might have been disgruntled, likely has little to do with why he committed a heinous act of terror.
I was willing to give Secretary Napolitano the benefit of the doubt. I imagined that some left-wing Kool-Aid drinker released this report before Napolitano knew much about it. It has been reported that something similar occurred. In this situation, you would think Secretary Napolitano would quickly apologize for such horrible, unfounded accusations. All she has done is say she “owed” an apology to veterans and advocates of the pro-life position. A simple, “I am sorry for the outrageous, unfounded allegations leveled against our brave men and women of the armed forces” has yet to be uttered.
The DHS, Secretary Napolitano, and the rest of the federal government need to realize that conservatives are not dangerous right-wing extremists. This report identifies many of the people you and I know as potential terrorist threats. Think about your preacher who teaches against abortion. Think about the veteran who tells you stories. Think about all the hard-working Americans you know who have lost jobs. All of these people could be classified as threatening right-wing extremists if using this report as guide. These individuals are average Americans who are doing nothing more than exercising the freedoms they enjoy under the laws of this great country.
The real damage comes when we limit the ideas which can be voiced. You would never catch me at an anti-war rally. Instead, you would find me at a tax day tea party. Whatever the case, I support the right of all Americans to voice their opinions in a peaceful manner.
Don’t let the government label average Americans as right-wing extremists just because their ideology doesn’t match that of the majority party in Washington, D.C.
I urge you to read the report and let your voices be heard.
--As Appeared in The Daily Mississippian on Monday, April 20, 2009
No comments:
Post a Comment