Took yesterday off from posting, and no, I didn't ride over to St. Helena Parish to take advantage of the thriving adult entertainment industry.

I'm guessing most folks who follow the story saw/read yesterday about the bombings and the non-fatal attack on the DHL airplane in Iraq. Today, more grim news in Iraq, where three US soldiers were killed, two in Mosul, and a third near Ba'qubah. Meanwhile, in the forgotten war, the Taliban claimed responsibility for an explosion at a hotel in Kabul. Hamid Karzai's government admits they don't control the provinces, but now their ability to maintain order in the capital is not a given.

And, for those nostalgic for the good old days of COINTELPRO, here's a story from the New York Times regarding our FBI hard at work fighting terrorism--by collecting data on antiwar protesters. You'd think they might devote their resources to actually fighting genuine terrorists, as opposed to those exercising their constitutional rights...rights that may soon be taken away.

I realize it's quite a jump from sleepy Baton Rouge to Counter Intelligence, but you might be surprised. In the late 1960's/early 1970's, there were active agents collecting data in Baton Rouge--while the focus was mostly on those involved in the Civil Rights Movement, at least one individual was assigned to the antiwar movement--which did not exist in any meaningful way. So, the agent in question CREATED an antiwar movement. Interesting. Incidentally, the identity of this agent was kept a secret until he ran for student body president--someone discovered that this erstwhile antiwar activist was on the payroll of the local police, and further investigation indicated the source of funds was federal.

You know, this is pathetic AND scary. Scary because the difference between "monitoring" and "acting against" (through use of such information in attempts to defame those who are being monitored) is one of nuance. And pathetic because this country is supposed to allow people to speak, assemble, and petition freely. If the FBI wants to make a difference, they should go after TERRORISTS, damnit, not Americans who are using their freedoms.

To harken back to another era in BR--back in the 80's, I recall a police crackdown on young adults--at the time, I fit that description--who hung out around Chimes Street, drinking cheap beer (we couldn't afford anything else), talking, and otherwise doing what young people do...several people we're arrested on open container violations, a good friend of mine who WASN'T DRINKING was arrested for LITTERING because a piece of paper fell out of his pocket while police were removing his wallet from the same pocket--eventually a number of folks marched from campus to City Hall to demand a stop to the harrassment.

Meanwhile, plenty of real crime was occurring on a daily basis in the city--serious crime, like assault, sexual assualt, robbery, burglary, murder--you name it. Hell, the cops could've had a field day on the open container law if they ever showed up on Saturday evenings when there were home football games. So, why did they go after the street folks?Simple--it was easier. And I'm sure that's exactly what the FBI is thinking.

Like I said--scary AND pathetic.