TERRORISM AND MEDIA MANIPULATION

[salgan]

TERRORISM AND MEDIA MANIPULATION
The other weapon of the USA
and its allies

BY JUAN C. ALFARO

THE new threat of a "terrorist attack" is intimidating the world. But
whose interests does "international terrorism" really serve?

While the world was gradually beginning to question the Israeli
offensive in the Lebanon in the face of so much destruction and the
many
civilian deaths, something has occurred that is beyond any coincidence
and has arrived at an opportune moment to justify the so-called "war on
terrorism" implemented by the United States and its allies.

On August 10, British security forces announced that they had foiled
the
plans of a gang attempting to blow up various passenger aircraft flying
from the UK to the United States.

Initially, the British police detained 24 suspects, according to them
from "radicalized Islamic circles."

In that context "international terrorism" put all the "Western and
civilized world" on maximum alert, and the accompanying fears on the
part of all its governments and inhabitants.

In the UK the level of alert was "critical situation." On its Internet
page MI5 (the secret service) stated on its web page that the maximum
point on the level of alert should be maintained. The agency asked the
public to "be very vigilant" to possible suspicious acts and
immediately
report any anomaly to the police.

Like a rapidly spreading virus, paranoia emerged in the Western world,
increasing security levels to the maximum. According to the world
media,
various international airports opted to cancel flights and make
exhaustive checks for "fear of some of the terrorists involved still
being on the loose."

To date, the 24 people detained are Muslims of British nationality.
According to U.S. intelligence, at least 50 persons were involved. As
opposed to the July 7 (7J) attacks in London last year, intelligence
sources assure that there is a direct link between the detainees and
high-level members of Osama Bin Laden?s Al Qaeda network.

Within this framework, various scenarios of psychosis were recorded,
obliging many nations to raise their levels of alert. There was news of
emergency landings on account of packages containing dishes and trays,
plus a message written in a foreign language. Everything and everyone
is
suspect.

As a regular event serviceable to his strategy, within minutes of the
announced "frustrated terrorist plot," U.S. President George W. Bush
assured that his country is "at war with Islamic fascists."

Bush also took advantage of the incident to announce that cooperation
between Washington and London had been excellent.

The president also declared that it was a mistake to believe that there
is no threat to the United States, affirming that while the country is
safer than before September 11, it is not yet completely so.

Thus emerged a new chapter in this tragic soap opera written by Bush
and
his hawks, which commenced on September 11, 2001.

It is important not to be na?ve and to explore this issue more deeply
in order to elucidate whose interests a situation such as this serves.

Since 11S, U.S. foreign policy has generated a series of changes and
the
unilateral implantation of its "war on terrorism." After the March 11,
2205 attack in Spain and that of 7J in the UK, Europe and a large part
of the Western world have gone along this path leading to what occurred
this week.

But what a large part of the international community is not taking the
time to meditate upon are what factors and results come into play in
this scenario.

The world has been seeing and hearing about "conspiracies," "terrorist
plots" and "threats" for the last five years. At a time when the
world?s attention is on other important issues, Bin Laden and Al
Qaeda
are making their appearance via videos of dubious origin.

Moreover, the situation is propitious for Bush. After imposing a
"global
counter-terrorist war" to protect all the nations of the planet,
Washington is reaffirming its own doctrine of "national security,"
"preventive war" agenda and pretending to demonstrate itself as the
paladin of the 21st century needed to put an end to this threat.

And not only at planetary level, but also at internal level.

We should recall that there are congressional elections next November
in
the United States. According to surveys, the Republicans could lose
their majority in both the House and Senate.

That would be a serious blow to the ailing Bush administration, and
could lead to a new Watergate.

And so, as in the 2004 presidential elections, another little piece of
help from Al Qaeda would serve as a weapon to reverse that panorama.

At that time a video of Bin Laden threatening a "terrorist attack on
New
York" allowed Bush his second mandate after a very hard-fought
electoral
campaign.

In the case of the U.S.? Spanish ally Jos? Mar?a Aznar, a
prescription that is so very American led to his displacement by his
rival Jos? Luis Rodr?guez Zapatero after 11M, and in the wake of
earlier opinion polls who put Aznar in the lead.

The same strategy was tried in Italy, with Silvio Berlusconi (another
Bush ally), with dismal results. In March, Antonio Martino, then the
defense minister, stated that the possibly of a terrorist attack on the
eve of the April 9-10 polls "could not be excluded," in order to
influence the results. The attack never existed and Berlusconi?s
party
was the grand loser.

It was demonstrated then that only the Americans could gain benefit
from
the "terror syndrome" and thus carry out their missions.

A study by IAR-Noticias reflects this situation Bush and his
administration were the main benefactors of the 11S, the 11M and the
7J.

The study notes that with the 11S, Washington gained the consensus for
invading Iraq and Afghanistan. With 11M and its recreated impact in the
United States, Bush gained the presidential reelection in 2004. And
with
7J it succeeded in renewing the Patriot Act, an essential weapon in the
"counterterrorist war".

Moreover, it is worthwhile noting that in each one of Washington?s
military invasions to "do away with terrorism" the weapons, oil and
technological corporations and those of services to the U.S.
Military-Industrial Complex obtained huge profits.

In that context, Bin Laden and Al Qaeda are no more than functional
tools for Washington?s needs in the search for a great new enemy to
replace the extinguished Soviet Union and the threat of communism.

And the results leap into view. The Northern power is achieving a
national and international consensus to back and justify its policies
of
military invasion based on the designs of its empire.

Thus "international terrorism" justifies the new U.S. "doctrine of
national security," the "preventive strikes," internal espionage and
moreover, the elaboration of a new "military conflict hypothesis."

In the international scenario, where conventional military wars among
states are not frequent, the phantom of Bin Laden serves as a pretext
for the military expansion of the United States and its allies.

Are there just a few of us who have grasped that situation? No, by the
grace of humanity revealing voices are making themselves more and more
heard in various parts of the world.

According to a survey run by the prestigious Zogby International
Institute in the United States last May, 42% of U.S. citizens doubt the
official version of 11S. Moreover, they believe that the investigatory
commission produced a cover up operation. But, a further 44% believe
that Bush utilized the attacks to unleash the war on Iraq.

From another point of view, Russian General Leonid Ivashov, who was
chief of the Russian armed forces at the time of the 11S attacks,
maintains in a note published by Red Voltaire that international
terrorism "does not exist" and that the September 11 attack "was a
show."

"What we are seeing is no more than a terrorism manipulated by the
great
powers that would not exist without them," Ivashov wrote.

Beyond "conspiracy" theories or a "real attack" in terms of 11S, it is
a
fact that Al Qaeda is presumably embodying an Islamic fight against the
West. This appreciation is moreover, unfortunate, and not only because
of what is being said on this side of the world.

At the beginning of August, in the midst of the Israeli aggression on
Lebanon, an alleged televised video by Ayman al-Zawahiri, introduced as
the "Al Qaeda Number 2," called on the Sunni and Shiite communities to
unite against Israel.

Interrogated by the Russian Ria-Novosti agency, a Hizbollah spokesman
declared that the video was a fake prepared by the U.S. and Israeli
intelligence services. He also emphasized that the Shiite movement has
never had and will never have relations with Al Qaeda due to the
differences between the two groups, above all in matters related to
religion and politics.

"Hizbollah defends the interests of the Lebanon and the entire Arab
world while Al Qaeda is playing the U.S. administration?s game and
its
actions do nothing more than damage Islam and all Muslims," he
concluded.

Terrorism and fear, the other weapon of the United States and its
allies. Or if not, it is worth reflecting on this. Washington is losing
the war on "Islamic terrorism" in Iraq and Afghanistan. Israel is
losing
the war on "Islamic terrorism" in Lebanon and the Middle East.

In the face of this adverse situation, a new "potential terrorist
attack" has appeared as if fallen from the skies.

To date, neither the United States with the CIA have contributed
precise
information on the existence or the death of Bin Laden, and to date,
nobody has revealed how he was able to escape from the military siege
of
and the missiles over Afghanistan.

Osama the evasive disappeared without a trace, despite the fact that he
is being sought everywhere by the whole world?s intelligence
services,
and meanwhile, the "war on terrorism" is continuing its sinister
course." (MERCOSUR Journalism Agency)

Roger Nettleship

[Abuja]

I would say that you are right by saying that terrior and the media is a great weapon for anyone to use in todays world. As almost every nations is using this not Just America. Look at Iraq, Iran, South Korea and many other parts of this world especially in Africa. But if you want to argue this in any way it should be from your own thought and not copied from the internet and then posted here as your way to show what you say America is doing.

Sincerely, Abuja/Larry