Imagine a future in which the government creates mobile commissions to conduct McCarthy-esque hunts for "homegrown terrorists" nationwide. Keep in mind that Freedom of Information Act requests revealed that in our own fair Valley, the American Friends Service Committee (i.e., pacifist Quakers) have been surveilled by Pentagon anti-terrorism units. (Here is the original document, detailing surveillance about an AFSC protest in Springfield, Mass.–initially misidentified as Springfield, Illinois–South Hadley and Greenfield.)
Sounds like a science fiction novel, no? Well, the bill creating the commissions has already passed the House with 404 yes votes, and is now on its way to the Senate. The dystopia is now. Fortunately, the mainstream media has made us all aware of this so that we can contact our congresscritters and let our feelings be known. But of course, by the time we know about it, they probably will have passed it and started adding those who oppose it to a watch list.
