November 21, 2006 (1): The Culture of Fear

The real story behind the incident at UCLA's Powell Library is the way in which it demonstrated how successful those in power have been at turning American society into a culture of fear. Anyone considering denying this proposition should consider a breaking story from Associated Press concerning the removal of six Muslim scholars from a US Airways flight from Minneapolis to Phoenix. Here is how Associated Press reported the grounds for the removal:

A passenger raised concerns about the imams — three of whom said their normal evening prayers in the airport terminal before boarding the Phoenix-bound plane, according to one — through a note passed to a flight attendant, according to Andrea Rader, a spokeswoman for US Airways.

The Council on Islamic-American Relations has called for an investigation, and I hope they get a good one. As is the case with the UCLA story, we are in no position to judge the merits of this case on the basis of what the media feed us. Nevertheless, I am sure it will not be long before the Internet is flooded with expressions of mass indignation on both sides of the story.