Are you afraid of another terrorist attack? I certainly am not. However I am afraid 
that other people are. When people are afraid they are likely to accept any changes that 
briefly mention security.
	Acts of terror are nothing new to me. I have not witnessed many of them but I am 
familiar with them. Several months ago, on the news, I heard of a pseudo-company that 
was shipping packages to various addresses through the postal service. These packages 
contained a sponge that was drenched in a deadly bacterium. I do not recall that name of 
the bacteria but I do recall that this incident was not labeled as a terrorist act. I also 
remember that the reporters were calm and this incident was no big deal.
	Yesterday though, I heard of "terrorists" sending anthrax through the mail, but 
unlike last time I heard the worry of the reporters. Now today at school I hear absurd 
stories of about six people dying of anthrax in Brooklyn. I hear this story blindly being 
repeated by students throughout the day.
	This type of behavior terrifies me. To me this is proof that people are afraid and 
are becoming devoured by their own ignorance. They fear death so much that they lose 
their common sense and resort to pure ignorance. A person in this state is likely to 
believe anything that is told to them and accept anything that has the mere mention of 
security.
	Congress can pass a bill that allows face-recognition technology to be placed in 
airports and other public places and people will not oppose it. They won't even think 
twice about it although it is a breach of our civil rights. This type of technology probably
won't solve our problems anyway. Too many people are willing to give up their freedom 
for the illusion of security. Benjamin Franklin once said in 1759 "Those who would give 
up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor 
safety." It is a shame that people don't see this.
	I'm really afraid that this "terrorism" thing will go so far that America will turn 
on its citizens. I'm afraid that once Bin Laden is caught people who think for themselves 
and don't follow orders blindly will be labeled as the next "terrorists." People who have 
sympathy for innocent families in Afghanistan will be seen as "terrorists." Anyone who 
exercises free speech will be labeled a "terrorist." I'm afraid that anyone who doesn't run 
with the "lemmings" will be called a "terrorist." 
	This has happened before. During the Cold War anyone who had different beliefs
than the government was assumed to be a communist. I fear that it's happening again. I 
recently read an article which said that 1/3 of New Yorkers support a kind of "intern 
camp" for citizens that are potential terrorists. I'm afraid that I might be in some camp 
because I think differently. This is the only thing I'm afraid of.

								Written By Epiphany
								     10-15-01  
								   Port7Alliance