Wombat

Many years ago I was mugged by a gang in the street in broad daylight. Although I ended up with some bruises, I wasn't seriously hurt, and insurance covered the stuff that was stolen. The main after-effect was a general bad attitude. I felt hostile and paranoid, specially towards anybody who looked like the people responsible. I didn't feel entirely rational or fair minded. If I'd been in control of the local police force I would have organized house to house searches of the area, and authorized my cops to do whatever the hell they wanted to suspects. Those feelings only lasted for a few weeks, and eventually I was back to my cheerful self, but I've never forgotten how crazy and hostile I felt for that short time.

So what am I getting at? America was mugged on September 11th, 2001. The after-effects have been hostility and paranoia. So far these effects show no sign of going away. For instance, Journalists from friendly countries, countries whose tourists do not need visas, get stopped at the airport and treated like terrorists and then deported if they don't have a special "Journalist Visa". A guy who silently protested outside his local army recruitment office by standing there dressed like an Iraqi from one of the infamous abuse pictures was arrested. And we are still fighting a war in Iraq that can only be explained as irrational hostility towards people who happen to look like the 911 attackers.

This has to stop. It's time to get the fuck over the 911 attack and restore life to normal.