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“A city terrorist is a guy like us”
Published: 29 November, 2009, 16:46
Edited: 30 November, 2009, 05:08
Dmitry Evstafyev from the Russian Center for Policy Studies believes that acts like the recent railroad blast underlines the notion that city terrorism is displacing other kinds of terrorism in Russia.
If that is truly the case, then liberty in Russia is very much in danger. The effort to catch the bad guys could easily overwhelm efforts to make the society more open. Look what we did in USA - our Constitution was almost completely overturned in our response to the 9-11 attacks. We are in a much more restrictive society now, and we all are vulnerable to malicious 'snitches'. Also, Obama recently said that he wants to extend the Patriot Act, which was horrible legislation giving the government the ability to spy on us at will and without a court warrant. Then there was that military tribunal legislation in 2007, which did away with 'habeas corpus' and allowed the president to incarcerate anybody, even citizens, just by calling them 'enemy combatants'. I will always remember that we had at least one citizen in Guantanamo Bay prison for years - no lawyer, no due process. So much for the idea: 'it cannot happen to me'. I hope Russia is better at balancing liberty and security than we were.
Ideological anarchism and nihilism have always been at the root of urban terrorism. But it is important to keep moving towards ever more open and prosperous society. This is a best antidote. At the same time, intelligence services will have to strenghten. This is true of US as well as Russia. This is the only way to identify malignant, anti-social behavior, that in some cases turns to violence. The worst thing immaginable is to destroy the civil rights that took centuries to acquire. It took struggle of many generations to get to this point, and terrorists should not be empowered to deprive people of their hard won rights. So, no sliding back on liberty. It is time to mourn, and time to close ranks. It is also time for all citizens of Russian Federation to support each other, not to look for blame. And above all, the country as a whole should condemn the "pundits" who will be quick to politicize the tragedy. I echo Count Cash. Move on, trust people to look after each other.
The people are the key, never alienate them, they are our best, most advanced intelligence system ever. There is no better! Just give them a clear reporting path, check everything out, and reward them for their efforts. Trust in our people and they will repay you more than you ever will know.