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An injured evacuated by paramedics during the early hours of the morning following the Paris terror attacks. Photo from Portland Pressheald.
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Everyone's blood pressure and stress levels have gone up since the recent terror attacks in Beirut, Baghdad, Paris and Bamako. People who already had high blood pressure from long distance flights and traveling are now equally paranoid following the Russian Metrojet crash in the Sinai. Add in the Paris and Bamako attacks, the world looks terrifying. The constant media coverage of the before, during and after the Paris attacks continues to keep French and other Western as well as Russian and Malian government on their respective toes. The local police, Europol and Interpol have turned their attention intensely to terrorism and national security at any cost. Police chiefs are holding daily press conferences to comfort the public and the media over the ongoing situation. The ordinary citizens are feeling the full effects of excessive security search and frisk and the 24 hour security camera scrutiny everywhere they go. Residential neighborhoods are also caught in the climate of fear. CNN has been overusing its Breaking News segment for over a week now and has gone to great lengths to deliver minute detail on the step by step police raids, procedures and investigations. While the 24 hour coverage is helpful for many survivors, beavered families and distraught friends and news junkies (for lack of a better word) seeking solace and closure, such coverage is having another affect on global audiences. The coverage is causing global panic even if the mainstream stations and foreign correspondents brush the overreaction of police forces and governments aside. Local crime is being redefined as a form of potential terrorism no matter if it is a stressed person taking their anger out on the streets or a suspicious looking or nerve wrecked people who hyperventilate at the sight of security checkpoints.
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| Le Carillon Bar and solitary reflection. The day after the brutal terrorist attack. Photo by UK Business Inside |
RT News The Big Picture: Terrorism fear mongers profiting from mainstream media
Fear and xenophobia
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| The most wanted man in Belgium and by extension the world: Salah Abdelsalam still in hiding. Europol and interpol are stressing the public out trying to find him before another attack takes place. |
Brussels' metro stations remain closed. Public transport is the lifeline and a necessity for many Brussels residents and in many European capitals, metro stations are a necessity for local city residents not an exception. The military has now been integrated into public places and city centers alongside the police as a must. Reporters rarely ask why some citizens' family trees, religion, travels or ticks need to be scrutinized by the national security gatekeepers and terror experts each time a terrorist attack occurs. The European and American governments want to make sure the panicked people understand that the terrorist threat and ISIS is no laughing matter. While the humanization of victims from the terror attacks play in a loop on TVs across the world, Islam and Muslims have been condemned for not saying or doing enough to halt ISIS or terrorism. Muslims around the world from Pakistan to Malaysia to France and Sudan outright cursed, condemned, isolated and even fought against ISIS and its Takfiri cousins. Kurds, Syrians and yes the Syrian government, Iran, Iraq and Jordanian forces have all been fighting against ISIS from day one. Even Hamas has no respect for ISIS and have fought for over a year to halt ISIS propaganda frm flowing freely in Occupied Gaza and Palestine. For the Israel first supporters and Zionists who want to equate ISIS and Hamas bear in mind that they are not allies nor can tolerate each other. Ironically Hamas and Israel do have one thing in common, they both want to prevent ISIS from taking hold in their societies.
Fox News using immigration issue to stoke fears of terrorism
Contrary to the media question "Why don't Muslims speak out against terrorism?", Islam and Muslims continue to fight physically, socially and loudly against ISIS and by extension all terrorism. The more nerve wrecked and paranoid people of Western societies are not convinced. Both right wing and liberal self proclaimed defenders of Democracy and patriots (U.S., Canada) and nationalists in Europe have attacked mosques, Islamic centers hosted large anti-refugee/migrant rallies and have gathered up arms in anticipation of a real life clash of civilization. Islam is permanently equated with terrorism even though the Quran is against the taking and killing of innocent life and emphasis justice.
Decades old xenophobia and Islamophobia is not helped by politicians. Donald Trump's now infamous remarks about Muslims has turned him into a cause celeb of the nationalists and organizations. Trump is currently running for Republican nominee for the 2016 U.S. presidential elections. His campaign revolves around a nationalistic, anti-mass immigration, generalizing Islam and simplifying foreign policy. Trump commented that Muslims should carry special IDs, some should be monitored via a database around the clock, Syrian refugees being denied entry into the United States. The second popular Republic Presidential candidate Ben Carson compared Syrian refugees to rabid dogs receiving disgust and at the same time support from Americans. This has fed into the fear and ongoing Islamophobia across the U.S. and Europe. The media has also been pushing the view by giving Trump and other share a like minds airtime to share their views. The current atmosphere is not far off from the fear, xenophobia and economic recession that led to the rise of fascism and Nazism in 1920s Europe. Trump's ideas echoes the same attitude of American society and government officials that led to the internment of Japanese Americans throughout World War II. Dehumanization and negative stereotypes with far reaching consequences play a huge role in society's perception of groups of people and cultures living thousands of miles away. Media and propaganda isn't just harmless. It reaches into the subconscious.
Donald Trump in his own words
PS: Leaders who not crazy but have insane ideas rely on the fear and panic of the general population for support. No one paid attention to Adolf Hitler's early rants, xenophobia and extreme racism until it manifested into reality. Mussolini was treated as a national hero until his reign of terror and fear silenced society. The same happened with Pol Pot in Cambodia and Sukano in Indonesia. Society's fear of the scary other serves the media, politicians and national security state.
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