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On Mon, Jul 6, 2009 at 10:18 PM, stevertigo wrote:
There was a more subtlely blunt point here - one that I glanced over: That the real reason for the blackout had nothing to do with any sophisticated tactics for lowering Rohde's profile, but rather it was to comply with kidnapper demands. Is that correct?
Nice.
Quite; hence the subject. (I'm sure we all remember the phrase 'if you do X, [[the terrorists have won]].' Well, we did X.)
More generally, my point is that the reasoning offered for the censorship is intellectually bankrupt. Before they knew that silence was part of the terrorists' demands, people were falling all over themselves to justify it as some sort of heroic action ('silence will... err, somehow help out negotiations or soothe those savage beasts!'); but now that the facts of the matter turn out to be opposite, they will no doubt seize on the new justification to maintain their position ('if we don't follow their demands, they may kill the hostage!').
They are like the stereotypical Panglossian/religious person, upon hearing a child was barely saved from being run over - 'Ah, surely that is a miracle! God is great!' - but when they hear the child was in actuality run over and the rumor incorrect - 'Ah, surely that is part of God's awesome plan! God is great!'