Before I begin, I want to make something clear. While I certainly do not condone what Stack did with his plane in Austin, I do think he made many valid points in his goodbye letter about our system of corruption and business/government intermarriage. I think what happened and the fact that lives were taken is a truly terrible thing.
I have two beefs with our media right now following this event.
One: Where is the discussion of Stack's motives? The letter has gone largely unmentioned and uninvestigated as a source for reason behind the attacks. When the 9-11 pilots did a similar attack, their motives were widely covered (albeit distorted) and used to begin two wars and a revamping of our security in the U.S. The media has largely ignored his letter and what drove him to do this. Again, the media drops the ball on serious investigation of the matter (like Iraq), yet we know how much his house was worth and what commentary there is over what Tiger Woods is going to say publicly tommorow. This is one example of the ridiculous media we live with in the U.S.
The truth is that the letter raises serious questions abour government and it's actions, and this is why it's not mentioned. The media, yet again, tucks tail and mentions nothing when it could implicate the massive complex of business and government.
Two: Where is the investigation of Stack's religious/ethnic background, as well as the resistance groups he mentions all over the letter?
After 9-11, all news outlets mentioned the ethnic/religious backgrouns of the attackers as "Muslim" ("radical" Muslims at that). This was heavily tied to their actions and motives for the attack. However, there has been no similar coverage of Stack as a representative member of some ethnic or religious group. There has been no coverage of how his being a member of these resistance groups he mentions during his suicide letter could have aided his actions and extremism, and there has certainly been no governmental move to eradicate them as some 'enemy force' in the same way it did with respect to Muslims and Arabs in similar 'problematic' groups.
Stack is instead viewed as an individual, much like McVeigh, Kazinsky, and other 'individual' terrorists who had beefs with the government (See Kaczinsky and the Leftist Manifesto, or McVeigh's Libertarian and anti-government beliefs). All of these men belonged to or worked for goals of anti-governmental organizations, yet no smear campaign comparable to that of the 9-11 attacks takes place. There is a racial component here as well that is undeniable. If you're a white male committing terrorism, you're a troubled person. If you're a Muslim (like the Ft. Hood shooter or 9-11 attackers), get ready to have your whole ethnic group put on the spot. Meanwhile, white males can rest assured their way won't be hampered with bothersome questions all over the media about their legitimacy in the country.
Our media is a failure, yet again, and this coverage of the terrorist in Austin proves it.
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2 comments:
You have such a unique way of looking at a situation. Most people simple eat what the media feeds them but you have refined taste. You just don't eat any of the bullshit. My favorite idea from this blog is this: "If you're a white male committing terrorism, you're a troubled person. If you're a Muslim (like the Ft. Hood shooter or 9-11 attackers), get ready to have your whole ethnic group put on the spot." Amazing. People simple do not want to realize this or realize this but decide to look the other way about it or sweep it under the rug. Good for you for trying to expose what everyone else wants to keep hidden under the rugs.
Seriously, I can't fucking believe the kinds of things that go unsaid or unnoticed by many. And it's really nobodys individual fault, because everybody is taught to ignore these things. However, now that I know, I try and do everything I can to heighten my ability to see these things and point them out to anyone that's willing to listen.
I also notice that many people tend to say "Man, it's so crazy that he did that!", referring to the pilot attacker. However, when the 9-11 attacks happened, it less of an individual curiosity and more of a collective effort for our institutions to demonize and dehumanize Muslims to facilitate the stereotyping and racism towards them. It's not so much "crazy" for Muslims to do it, but more expected and a feeling of "Man, we should be doing more to stop them!"
The United States of Racism.
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