A House Homeland Security Subcommittee hearing on “Terrorism and the Internet” held last week, and broadcast on C-Span, featured a panel of “experts”, including representatives formerly of the RAND Corporation and the Simon Wiesenthal Center who presented 9/11 truth websites sites alongside sites that celebrate the attacks and offer training in terrorist tactics.
The hearing was chaired by Democratic Rep. Jane Harman, and ranking Republican, Rep. Dave Reichert. It was supposed to focus on the use of the internet by “home grown terrorist recruiters” yet in a shocking move it blatantly related the 9/11 truth movement with so called radical “jihadists”.
Over recent months we have witnessed a growth in this disturbing trend to attempt to equate peaceful 9/11 researchers and truth activists with violence and extremism. The prime culprits have been establishment “news” hacks who are raising the same talking point ad infinitum, dubbing the global truth movement “anarchists” and violent individuals who may be aiding terrorists.
Talking heads such as Fox News Bill O’Reilly and Glenn Beck over on CNN, have specifically targeted 9/11 truthers in segments designed to portray the movement as dangerous and sow the seed in the minds of what viewers they have left that peaceful truth seekers are actually in league with violent terrorists.
The bill to which these hearings are tied, H.R. 1955: Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007 , defines “violent radicalization” as “The process of adopting or promoting an extremist belief system for the purpose of facilitating ideologically based violence to advance political, religious, or social change.”
It further defines “homegrown terrorism” as “The use, planned use, or threatened use, of force or violence by a group or individual born, raised, or based and operating primarily within the United States or any possession of the United States to intimidate or coerce the United States government, the civilian population of the United States, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.”
The bill’s reference to how “The Internet has aided in facilitating violent radicalization, ideologically based violence, and the homegrown terrorism process in the United States by providing access to broad and constant streams of terrorist-related propaganda to United States citizens,” is shocking.
Remember, the bill is not aimed at “Al-Qaeda” websites or arabic forums that post alleged Bin Laden video tapes, it is aimed at American citizens using American based websites, like the very one you’re reading now.