The Dark Wraith carries a chilling report of a Dartmouth student who ended up talking to Homeland Security agents simply because he sought out a copy of Mao's Little Red Book. Obviously, loan requests are subjected to keyword searches. The thought will infuriate anyone who relies on libraries to obtain political books.
S'funny -- when I was young, when Mao was alive, the free availability of his book was usually cited as the classic example proving America's unfettered intellectual freedom. (The other example was Mein Kampf.) Most Americans felt proud to boast that any citizen could read any political text without fear of governmental intrusion.
Back then, only sexual materials were censored.
Now, sexual writings of all sorts have become so widely available that few writers can profit from them; why should the public pay for what it can get for free? Yet if you show any interest (even a historical interest) in certain proscribed political works, you will end up on a "watch" list.
Suppose you ask to see a work produced by Mao, the Ayatollah Khomeini, Fidel Castro, Alfred Rosenberg, whomever. Suppose you make the request out of pure curiosity -- you simply want to see what all the fuss was once about. Will you be able to travel by air? Will you have to explain your reading habits to all future employers?
How, exactly, did "Mao" enter that keyword list? Most of us were under the impression that the feds had targeted Islamic jihadists, who would abhor Mao's atheism. When was the last time American Maoists (I presume there are a few still around) committed a violent act? Hell, when was the last time any group on the far left was capable of sufficient cohesion to choose a date for a potluck dinner?
Perhaps the FBI should investigate the Bush administration, which has allowed China to steal so many American jobs. Or perhaps the feds should investigate Wal-Mart, where so many Chinese-made goods are on display. Last time I looked, China still considered itself a Communist country, and still revered (or at least paid lip-service to) the words of Mao.
8 comments:
Sorry this is off topic but you folks are smart and may be able to help me out. Over a year ago there was a hostage held in Iraq whom eventually ended up released outside of Iraq after a big hooplah about how'd he get out of the country, was he actually kidnapped, etcetc. Yet I dont have any names to go on to help search. If anyone has any info that can help me out Id be most appreciative.
liepardestin, there was a German citizen that happened to, and also a Canadian. The former was the one Condi Rice apologized to the German gov't for. The latter was renditioned to Morocco, I think.
Six years ago, I tripped the keyword alarms by mentioning the name of, you know, that guy who sent *ombs in wood boxes. We are being listened to all the time.
Try khaled al-masri.
Joseph,
This story is being covered a lot in library listservs and blogs. The school is UMass Dartmouth (vs. Dartmouth College in NH) and the reporter who wrote the story spoke with 2 professors, but not the student that says this happened (he is trying to make direct contact). This is all still in the "to be substantiated" category, I would say.
Ellen
Spying on americans? Thats insane!
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/12/19/225732/74
Regarding your roginal question, liepar: I bet I can guess where you are going with this. You're thinking about eh kidnapped church workers in Iraq -- who just happen to be working for the group which helped Hersch uncover the Abu Ghraib scandal. Ever since Nick Berg, there have been allegations that the kidnappings were fake, and those allegations were indeed (as I recall) semi-substantiated in one instance. I believe I will post about this...
Tis' isn't only historical interest. I can imagine that sometime in my scholastic career I may have to borrow books that are of a questionable nature. I just find it horrible to see that we are punishing those with curiosity. It really is a trend towards state control when something like a library search is subject to governmental search.
The tragedy that occurred on 9/11 is giving the government the start to the controls they have always wanted. They want a new system of government (that has in the past failed miserably!). This is just how other ‘regimes’ started.
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