At what point do 'we the people' individually and in mass, tell our elected representatives, (generously said, they're not mine) "ENOUGH?"
I pray with all my soul we take back control back of our government at all levels, functions and purposes before its too late, while we still can; before our constitutionally guaranteed personal freedoms, and with them our power to self determination, become quickly fading memories of what might have been.
I am aware that individually, to each and every one of us, taking power back from a government which has become as massive, controlling, invasive and self serving as ours, seems an impossible task; and, the fact is, individually, it is - and yet it is only by the actions of each of us, individually, that together we can, collectively, succeed. And, it is only through our individual actions, which our collective success entirely depends upon, that we, the people who are this nation, validate and perpetuate the dreams and ideals of those, from which many of us we are descendent, who gave us a country wherein: each individual has the freedom to pursue their happiness, live our lives in pursuit of that happiness and are at liberty to do so.
However, honesty demands that I tell you I hold little hope that our constitutionally guaranteed freedoms (rights) will survive this century, if that long. One need only observe that erosion had already severely restricted and eroded our rights before the events of 9-11-2001; then compare the greatly accelerated erosion of our rights which has taken since that date, to understand why I suspect our rights, and the freedoms they enable, are quickly becoming fading memories of the past.
As preface to further dialog, it should be universally recognized and accepted that there are those, both individuals and organizations, which always have, are now, and always will, seek to deprive the greatest proportions of their rights and freedom; who intend, either overtly or covertly, to enslave the general population to that individuals or organizations exclusive benefit. It's a malignancy of human existence as old as humanity, probably all life itself. Further, the previous truth applies to all people and countries on earth including the western industrialized countries; a group within which almost all existing democracies exist including the United States of America - the country this author is a citizen of and specifically writes about.
There is a social group (for want of a better handle, class) in our society which is large enough allow those who would strip us of our constitutionally guaranteed rights and any benefits we may derive therefrom to eventually do so. The largest class which play into the dark plans of those who design to cripple our constitutions guaranteed rights transcends all the social and economic classes of our society. Is a class in which the greatest number of members deny their membership because members are not aware they qualify for membership. Is a class for which there is only one requirement for membership.
So what is that one, single, requirement for class membership? Well it is nothing tangible, can't be seen, touched or felt. Likewise it is not Illiteracy; despite the fact that illiteracy might be said to contribute to a person being qualified for membership and thereby a member, illiteracy itself is not the qualifier. Likewise it is not literacy. Many class members are in fact highly educated, trained technicians and professionals; highly respected members of the community. The one single qualification one must possess for membership is: IGNORANCE.
The obvious, often cited, generally recognized short term goals of terrorism are blackmail and extortion. Other not so often stated but no less generally recognized immediate goals of terrorism is to acquire reputedly legitimate political power, to which end acts of terrorism disrupt the economic, social, political stability of a targeted power structure (country); not by directly attacking the government or any of it's branches; but, rather by attacking the general population, creating fear in that population, the object of which is to create a climate of fear (terror) in the general population and thereby erode the populations support of the government.
Hindsight being what it is, I'm sure the operators of the flight schools the 9-11 hijackers enrolled in to learn how to fly are probably all too aware they could have done much to foil the plans we witnessed executed on 9-11; after all, a person wanting to learn to navigate and fly a plane in essentially level flight and shows no interest in learning to take off or land is... well odd at the very least.
Much like a heavy truck driver wanting to learn to drive forward on the road but has no interest in learning to maneuver in close quarters or dock.