Right Rights
The “global struggle against violent extremism” is being used to erode civil liberties we’ve taken for granted for all of our lifetimes or fought to preserve against other external threats for the last hundred years and more. As the threats from the terrorists continue and as they act out their murderous agenda, confusion and fear mount, even among those best suited to deal with the problem, and we make it easier for liberty and democracy to be curtailed. That there are those among us who continue to make their hatred for us clear only exacerbates an already difficult situation, but an eye-for-an-eye mentality only leads worse to worst. In this climate of fear, it’s all too easy for a radical conservatism to take up other, unrelated causes, and to push through transformative legislation to alter the very character of our nations, and do so unopposed. Our opposition politicians, on whom we might otherwise rely to offer checks and balances against extremism – the non-violent kind – have largely become bystanders, enthralled as they are to popular opinion and re-election. It’s important to choose your battles, of course, but more and more often, every battle looks more and more important.