Two QA Projects Proposed

[RU Sirius]

1) So I have an idea for two opening projects, although they will only appeal to the more detail oriented among us.

When I write: "We call for the resurrection of all basic liberties and protections – including protections against pervasive surveillance – taken away by the federal government and by the executive branch of the Federal Government resulting directly -- or obviously – as the result of reactions to the events of 9/11::

I have a pretty good sense of what I mean but I'm a bit rusty on the details. It's been a pretty overwhelming assault over recent years, and I have other interests. Prove me wrong, but I am frustrated that their isn't one-stop shopping -- some clear, cautious, smart, accessible guide that delineates all the stuff that's happened on the federal level over the course of the Bush Administration (there's room for another one that covers more ground, but this would be a lot for now), with just enough detail to make the implications pretty clear but not so much as to be too exhausting to deal with.

This seems like something a group mind here could do a pretty good job of putting together.

2) In a similar vein, I have the idea that QuestionAuthority could sponsor what I'm calling, for the moment, a "Fair Share of Abuse" page... this page could monitor the most egregious and absurd abuses of authority on both a micro (individual) and macro level. There's this thing The Progressive website does called "McCarthyism Watch" but it's not very active and it has only the left slant on these things. What about a daily catalogue of absurdities and abuses?

Thoughts are welcomed.

[Phil Leggiere]

No problem. Time is right for a little intellectual street-fighting at the very least. Thanks for starting the start to push it out to the blogospehere and beyond- and hope we can keep up on all fronts to translate what seems like a lot of curiosity about qa into an expanding base of members. Despite having some differences Wendy MCElroy says she'll be joinging if she hasn't already.

[thebonobo]

i second that commendation. great job, Phil. in fact, i propose that we make that a live document, perhaps putting it up on the new mondo wiki site, and updating it as needed.

also, what about making a push to get this thing circulated, in paper form, on college campuses? we could make a PDF available for download, that people could then print and stick up on bulletin boards on campus.

additionally, why not make a graphical badge for folks to post on their blogs, that links to the QA homepage, where a prominent link leads to the timeline?

we could call it, "Chronicle of Lost Liberties"

if folks think that's a good idea, i can get the ball rolling...

[Phil Leggiere]

Yes, that's an excellent title- referencing the 2001-2007 dates for now of course. But I agree it's meant to be a live doc expandable forwards and back in time as well on a wiki depending on function.

[thebonobo]

here it is on the wiki:
http://mondoglobo.wftk.org/wiki/Chronicle_of_Lost_Liberties_%28A_Bu...

[Gary F. Moraco]

http://longestwalk.org/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1

[Yodhe]

Fair Share of Abuse

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7130495.stm

We can never be sure that the opinion we are endeavoring to stifle is a false opinion; and if we were sure, stifling it would be an evil still. ~John Stuart Mill, On Liberty, 1859

I believe that we should also have a "Library of Subversive Media" as part of the QA project.

I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it. ~Voltaire

[cRitter]

My daughter and I had a good laugh at Steak & Shake when she brought up the topic of the Holocost. It struck me as somewhat odd that a 12 year old would secretly share what she knew of the Nazi's with her classmates -- as if taboo could even make history interesting for middle schoolers. By the time we ordered our food the two of us were in tears, just imagining the children whispering in halls: "Psst. Did you hear about the Holocost?"

I believe that knowledge of our current events is somehow eclipsed by the horrors of yesteryear. As daddy's girl my daughter was well aware that the Natives didn't simply invite the American's over for a Thanksgiving feast. However, like most Americans, my daughter is unaware that the Iraqis didn't just invite us over either -- that we are continuing a policy of conquest that began with the founding of our nation.

It would be helpful to see a radical form of education -- in other words, propaganda -- that linked the past (as we know it) to our current realities. As I've read elsewhere, to connect the horrors of Nazi Occupation in WWII to the tragedy of American Occuption across the globe, would effectively shatter the illusion built up by one greedy administration after another, and build a sense of duty into the next generation of our children.

Posters are a great way to get your message across -- but today's world offers advertising on billboards and banner ads which would reach a broader audience. One image I've seen is the American flag of conquest stuck in every country that the US military occupies. That's a big number that tends to have a big effect. The same is true for the number of Iraqi children murdered by the Clinton/Gore administration. To express these facts as propaganda art would have a huge effect on the ignorant masses.

[Phil Leggiere]

The Fair Share of Abuse idea is starting to slowly take form on the wiki Civil Liberties Offense tracker, so check that out and start adding to it as you can.