March 29, 2024
Letter

Abandoning democracy

A recent opinion survey in Canada found that nearly 40 percent of Canadians regard George W. Bush as a greater threat to world peace and security than Saddam Hussein. Despite legitimate questions about the integrity of polling, this is a message of concern that should be taken seriously.

As an American, I too am concerned. Bush and his inner circle appear to have only the shallowest commitment to our democratic institutions. They are cynically manipulating post-Sept. 11 anxiety to amass Draconian powers in the executive branch. The Patriot Act, the Homeland Security Act and the recent resolution giving the president discretionary power to wage war on Iraq all serve this end.

What are we headed for? A police state? Military rule? Some corporate-sponsored oligarchy? Those who voice dissent are branded “unpatriotic” and official rhetoric has become chillingly Orwellian.

Half a century ago, Sen. Margaret Chase Smith had the integrity and political courage to take a stand against Joe McCarthy. Had McCarthyism prevailed, it would have been a national tragedy. This historic brush with authoritarian rule weighs on my mind when I see Congress consistently acquiesce to the undemocratic policies of the present administration. What has become of the separation of powers protecting our democracy from an imperial presidency? What does “advise and consent” mean if consent is a forgone conclusion?

Certainly Hussein is a disaster for the people of Iraq and his regime is arguably one of the many factors presently undermining global peace and security. But if threats, real or contrived, make Americans abandon our core principles of democracy, fairness and justice, we will have been defeated without so much as a skirmish.

Who poses the greatest threat to our well being? Forty percent of Canadians may be getting it right. It is sometimes our best friends who tell us what we least want to hear.

Stephen Miller

Westmanland


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