Year: 2006

“Our enemies have skillfully adapted to fighting wars in today’s media age, but for the most part we, our country, our government, has not,” Rumsfeld said in remarks to the Council on Foreign Relations in New York. He said that while the al Qaeda terrorist network and other “extremist” movements “have successfully . . . poisoned the Muslim public’s view of the West, we in the government have barely even begun to compete in reaching their audiences.”

He also called for creating 24-hour media operations centers and “multifaceted media campaigns” using the Internet, blogs and satellite television that “will result in much less reliance on the traditional print press.” Washington Post

This caught my attention. Rumsfeld wants to create “multifaceted media campaigns” using the Internet, blogs and satellite television. Immediate reaction; propaganda. You know what I think about that.

Moving on, just how have the al Qaeda and extremist networks poisoned the Muslim public’s view of us? I would really like to know. Have I missed some coverage, is there a plethora of blogs or satellite news services that I have missed. There is Aljazeera. Off I go on another internet search. I come up with Sabbah’s blog. Taken from his about me section: he is an Electronics & Communication Engineer from Birla Institute of Technology, born in Kuwait on April, 2nd, 1969. and a Jordanian national with Palestinian origins.

Here is a man across the globe that is questioning the same things that I a woman in the Untied States is. Our frames of reference are different but our subject matter is the same. Although Sabbah is a much better writer and deeper thinker than I will ever be.

Is Rumsfeld is worried about this. That with a few clicks of my mouse I can delve into the global voices, the global public opinion on any subject. I can get a glimpse into other peoples takes on life and my country. If used wisely, blogging is the anti-propaganda. I do not believe that by reading someone else’s opinions on any subject will poison my moral beliefs, I find it hard to believe that this would be any different for a Muslim. I do not read something and automatically believe it to be true. My perspective comes from my existence in my small little world. My upbringing and influences of my friends and family.

The violent extremist have established ‘media relations committees’, they know that communications transcend borders and they are able to act quickly at the most opportune time. The US government press offices must be able to respond faster in a 24-hour news cycle that takes in e-mail, blogs, instant messaging, digital cameras, a global internet, cell phones and satellite television. Source: montersandcritics.com

“You see, U.S. administration always said that “if you are not with us, you are against us.” So, anyone and everyone who do not agree with Bush administration is ultimately a terrorist?! Is this how the U.S. administration refers to us? I hope not, but no one can tell where they place us.”
From Sabbah’s Blog

We can all relax now, there is a global Internet, Rumsfeld is going to tap into it and our country will be safe from terrorism.

When should freedom of expression be limited?

The question of freedom of expression is usually a limited one. It is asked under circumstances that arise because of competing values. In this case: the cartoons.

Mill’s basis for liberty is that “Over himself, over his own body and mind, the individual is sovereign”. Who decides what is insulting, what is dehumanizing, what is acceptable? Who defines what is harmful? If we use the “court of public opinion” are we to use the American, Middle Eastern, or European court. As global communications expand, we experience events occurring in different regions of the world within our own homes. Now there is a global public opinion court and it brings the question should it take precedent over local ones.

It seems the Islamic court of public opinion has spoken. It becomes obvious that the cartoons are considered insulting. The reaction to the cartoons has become physically violent. On a global level, the reaction has been voiced by republications of the cartoons in 125 newspapers in 45 other countries, as an act of sympathy and support of free speech. Racial hatred, misunderstanding, paranoia (the threat of terrorist attacks), 9/11, and the occupation of Muslim countries by Western troops, have created a exceedingly polarized world. So, here we have the competing values, those of the Islamic nations and their friends and pretty much everyone else.

If the questions are answered by the global public opinion: The answers appear to be NO. Free speech can be used by those who intend different consequences than the simple exercise of their freedom of speech. Response to question posed on The Smell Test