I think OBill will enjoy this article more than others. It was sent to me by a friend in Australia.
Subject: The power of fear
This is what Amnesty International says in its latest annual Report about the real threats to humanity:
In 1941, US President Franklin Roosevelt laid out his vision of a new world order founded on "four freedoms": freedom of speech and of religion; freedom from fear and from want. He provided inspirational leadership that overcame doubt and unified people. Today far too many leaders are trampling freedom and trumpeting an ever-widening range of fears: fear of being swamped by migrants; fear of "the other" and of losing one's identity; fear of being blown up by terrorists; fear of "rogue states" with weapons of mass destruction.
Fear thrives on myopic and cowardly leadership. There are indeed many real causes of fear but the approach being taken by many world leaders is short-sighted, promulgating policies and strategies that erode the rule of law and human rights, increase inequalities, feed racism and xenophobia, divide and damage communities, and sow the seeds for violence and more conflict.
The politics of fear has been made more complex by the emergence of armed groups and big business that commit or condone human rights abuses. Both - in different ways - challenge the power of governments in an increasingly borderless world. Weak governments and ineffective international institutions are unable to hold them accountable, leaving people vulnerable and afraid.
History shows that it is not through fear but through hope and optimism that progress is achieved. So, why do some leaders promote fear? Because it allows them to consolidate their own power, create false certainties and escape accountability.
The Howard government portrayed desperate asylum-seekers in leaky boats as a threat to Australia's national security and raised a false alarm of a refugee invasion. This contributed to its election victory in 2001. After the attacks of 11 September 2001, US President George W Bush invoked the fear of terrorism to enhance his executive power, without Congressional oversight or judicial scrutiny. President Omar al-Bashir of Sudan whipped up fear among his supporters and in the Arab world that the deployment of UN peacekeepers in Darfur would be a pretext for an Iraq-style, US-led invasion. Meanwhile, his armed forces and militia allies continued to kill, rape and plunder with impunity. President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe played on racial fears to push his own political agenda of grabbing land for his supporters.
Only a common commitment based on shared values can lead to a sustainable solution. In an inter-dependent world, global challenges, whether of poverty or security, of migration or marginalization, demand responses based on global values of human rights that bring people together and promote our collective well-being. Human rights provide the basis for a sustainable future. But protecting the security of states rather than the sustainability of people's lives and livelihoods appears to be the order of the day.
http://thereport.amnesty.org/document/13
I do appreciate the conclusion as the only rational way to begin the Millennium in earnest if we wish our species to see another. Fighting over lines in the sand is idiotic. The civilized majority can, perhaps for the first time in the history of our species, achieve a worldwide peace that would be based on economic viability rather than fear. Water, Food, extermination of tyranny and finally the investment into our mutual future that is sure to follow. In the meantime Europe is leading the way and we are looking like the dark age fools talking about taking giant steps in reverse. All the logic, logistics and facts don't seem to bother the bigots who view the brown man as the boogieman. It seems none of them retained enough from elementary school to understand the dynamic properties of a currency based economy. When you give opportunity; you don't have less for it. It is apparently easier to swallow bullshit, than to discard prejudice.