The Terrorist Threat. Here's a paper bag. Breath into it.

The apprehension of 24 suspected terrorists in the UK raises more questions than are presently being answered. The British authorities are being taciturn on the subject short of the facts of the event itself.

What is not in question is that to many, the thwarting of an alleged plot is generating as much dread as if an act of terrorism itself had occured. Right blogistan and the political fear mongers are over-consuming valuable oxygen while they hyperventilate their way to a state of euphoria. Like kindergarten tots, they are pissing themselves while they jump up and down, point all around and scream, "See! I told ya so!"

There is a distinct smugness evident in those who would have us quake in our boots, agree with their limited world view and admit that there are terrorists under every bed. The goal is to have us melt with fear and submit to the will of the self-proclaimed "strong ones". They have the answers and we must assume the appropriate paranoia, suspicion and limits on our freedom - so that we can all remain free. We are expected to add to a commodity which is surfeit in their community - fear.

No. Fucking. Way.

The media has, quite expectedly, gone nuts. As usual, with a serious lack of information, major news outlets have hyped this story 25 ways to Sunday in an attempt to appear authoritative and well-informed. It's not just the lead story in every news organ - it's the only story. In 12 hours of coverage they produced no more information than they had been given at the initial announcement. But, the continued onslaught served its intended purpose. People, filled with fear, were glued to their TVs.

And the story is that 24 suspects with a plan to blow up 10 airplanes were apprehended before they could execute any plan.

The whole event played right into the hands of the world's leading wank. George W. Bush's statement on the subject, despite the fact that it was a rerun of every other non-attack, was enough to gag a maggot.

.... a stark reminder that this nation is at war with Islamic fascists who will use any means to destroy those of us who love freedom, to hurt our nation.

Ah yes. The very worn "they hate us for our freedoms" song. A shallow mind, hard at work - with the deductive power of an earthworm. Funny how when the police and intelligence services produce results and interdict Bush talks war. When his country is under direct attack, he reads passages aloud from Siegfried Engelmann and Elaine C. Bruner.

The basic tenet being presented by the righteously indignant is that global terrorism started on September 11, 2001 and from that point on we are required to adopt an unprecedented level of suspicion, live in constant fear of attack and surrender whatever we have built as free peoples in order to preserve a lifestyle - a lifestyle that would vanish if the doctrine of unassailable individual freedoms were removed from society. The former is simply not true and the latter is unacceptable.

Canada's Minister of Public Safety, Stockwell Day produced the following line in response to the UK arrests:

Canada is not immune to the threat of terrorism. Canada has been on a list articulated by Osama Bin Laden a number of years ago.

As if Osama Bin Laden and Islamic fundamentalists are the exclusive purveyors of terrorism. It makes one wonder what rock this guy has been living under.

Prior to September 11th, 2001, the world's single deadliest attack involving civil aircraft and the largest mass murder in Canadian history was the inflight bombing of Air India flight 182 on 23 June, 1985. No matter how you paint that picture, it placed Canada on the terrorist gunplot before any attack by Osama Bin Laden had been perpetrated on the US. And, it was carried out, not by so-called Islamic fascists, but by militant Sikh separatists - the Babbar Khalsa. Canada was warned about the extreme likelihood of such an attack weeks before flight 182 exploded.

Prior to that, on October 5th, 1970, the Front de Liberation du Quebec (FLQ) kidnapped British trade commissioner James Cross. Five days later they kidnapped Quebec Labour minister Pierre Laporte and eventually murdered him. On October 16th, 1970, Pierre Trudeau invoked the War Measures Act effectively suspending the rights of every Canadian citizen and giving police unbridled powers of arrest. Despite the fact that the FLQ attack was the worst terrorist attack Canada had endured up to that time, the War Measures Act was eventually removed from Canadian law and Trudeau received strong criticism for excessive use of federal government power. Regardless, it was homegrown terrorism perpetrated, not by Islamic fascists but by Quebec Marxist separatists.

Those are just two events which underscore the fact that Canada, as for most other wealthy countries, has always had to live with terrorism. The uber-rightists who are shouting, "I told ya so!" are telling us nothing new. If it's new to them, it's because they haven't been paying attention.

The police and intelligence services intercepting a plot to commit an act of terrorism does not warrant us adopting a stance born out of fear. That would simply imply that terrorism, even when foiled, still wins.

And, while Stockwell Day, to his credit, suggested there was no need to tighten counter-terrorism legislation, I defy anybody to try and take a tube of toothpaste with you through airport security. There is a point where fear turns to madness.

If, however, you feel more comfortable hiding under your bed, fearing what your neighbour is doing at 2 am and spying on the local Mosque, please do so. I will only object when your paranoia starts to have an effect on me. And it starts to affect everyone when people start writing or uttering words like:

Round. Them. All. Up. And. Lock. Them. Away.

Really? Who? And under what canon of laws?

It should be pointed out that the British authorities yesterday and the Canadian authorities in June, thwarted any plot through good police work, solid intelligence collection and presumably through legal means. No torture, no extraordinary rendition, no illegal wiretapping, no unlawful confinement.

But, for those who think rounding up anyone who might remotely present a terrorist threat has any merit, they may be focussing on too narrow a group. As I pointed out earlier, terrorists are not restricted to a particular religious adherence, race, nationality or creed. Anybody can be considered a terrorist if they participate in certain questionable or illegal activities.

So, this is part 1 of a two part piece. Part 2 will be intended to make people squirm, and you may never view your dentist the same again.

In the meantime, if you really must engage in the hysteria of fear, breath into a bag for a while or take a pill, or something. Your chances of being killed by terrorists are not good.