The frequent assurances to us US citizens that none of the surveillance is really aimed at us, or at least the most intrusive elements, bothers me for a special reason. I cannot abide by the notion that somehow "we" "Americans" (is that citizens of the US or citizens of any American country which extends all the way to the southern tips of Argentina and Chile?) are deserving of greater legal protection than are the "lesser washed" who do do not enjoy US citizenship.
Why should we view the world as having two classes of people in it - US citizens and all the rest? We get protected and, for the rest, they just wind up in holding cells, jails and prisons - or worse - with few of the safeguards that "we" enjoy.
How can anyone who believes in equality buy that argument? I cannot.
And then consider my situation. I am a US citizen, resident in the US, but am also an Irish citizen with part-time residency in France. I am not just one or the other - "foreigner" or "American"; I am both.
Why should we view the world as having two classes of people in it - US citizens and all the rest? We get protected and, for the rest, they just wind up in holding cells, jails and prisons - or worse - with few of the safeguards that "we" enjoy.
How can anyone who believes in equality buy that argument? I cannot.
And then consider my situation. I am a US citizen, resident in the US, but am also an Irish citizen with part-time residency in France. I am not just one or the other - "foreigner" or "American"; I am both.
No comments:
Post a Comment