by David V Cole

Created on: February 04, 2008

We do need to take action to ensure a better future for society. My consideration in this article is to the insidious threats that face democratic societies around the globe.

A growing threat exists and it thrives under our noses. Democratic societies face internal destruction from fifth columnists planted in their midst by various terrorist groups throughout the world. Their plan is to change government policies in various countries toward their goals.

In the beginning of 2000, a realization of these threats gave rise to aggressive action from several countries affected by these terrorist attacks. Democratic countries around the globe collaborated to control the spread of various terrorist agendas through sharing their intelligence with one another.

However, in recent years public apathy has swayed this effort underground to alleviate a rise in panic in the populations of the country. The recent bombings in 2004 in Spain that influenced their election is an example of this. The Spanish voted out a steadfast supporter of the U.S. government after terrorist bombings, and replaced him with Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero. Zapatero has openly blasted government policies against terrorism.

Emergency managers and military intelligence around the globe realized that to effectively plan for future terrorism, they needed to control the public fear to terrorist tactics by being discreet. It has been widely known in circles of government that the public reaction to most emergencies is one of alarm.

The public are like sheep. They react one of two ways to all situations. When things are going well, the public graze. When things are not, they panic. Spanish voting reactions in 2004 substantiate this theory.

What we, the public, need to do to ensure a better society is to be aware of the threats that face us and instill confidence and hope amongst ourselves. This will allow our governments to openly make plans to stop future terrorism and to be more effective.

The Spanish voted in fear to avoid further terrorism, but only bowed to the wishes of the terrorist. They did not understand that one of the main goals of terrorism is to change government policies. They only delayed further terrorism by bowing to their demands during the election.

It is similar to the big bad wolf outside the door threatening to blow your house down. The Spanish opened their door and let the wolf in. American society has acted similarly in the past few years by sticking their head in the sand and becoming apathetic about terrorism.

In order to ensure a better future for society, we must face these terrorist challenges head on, and not react as they expect us to.

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