This topic contains 11 replies, has 7 voices, and was last updated by 
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Have been reading such conflicting reactions to the latest Governments’ terrorism warnings in newspapers by its readers – ranging from blaming Bush & Blair for starting a war that’s opened a can of worms to some who believe it’s all Government make-believe as a ruse/excuse to control us more through creating continuing fear.
Obviously re. Spain, the Madrid bombings are still a recent horrific memory.
Am interested to know what SPI members think – is this latest warning real or Government-inspired?
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REAL! 😯 It would be foolish to ignore it. Remain vigilant. Terrorism threats are here to stay, IMO.
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It’s a power trip from the democratic governments. Ooh Ooh, we’re so askaired. Please make some more laws and save us.
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🙂
I’m smiling because Claire and lenox’s posts seem to typify the opposing reactions to this. One takes it seriously, another thinks it’s Government ‘troublemongering’.
I’m really on the fence on this one, don’t know what to believe with this latest warning.
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Real threat, there always will be whilst radical preachers etc. are brainwashing people to commit jihad.
I doubt all european Governments would collude in such deception, especially when harmful to the tourist industry.
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Half the time the authorities over-react just so they can be seen to be doing something.
I’ll let you into a secret about the airport security checks in the UK. What they are really designed to do is stop you smuggling your sense of humour out of the country.
The biggest over-reaction of them all is the “War on Terror”. The US has reacted as if a handful of cavemen pose an existential threat.
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As is often the case…Time will tell!
If the Governments sat back and said nothing, when they knew there was a very high risk of an attack, then everyone would be baying “WHY DIDN’T THEY WARN US?” They’re damned whatever!!
Germany has a different view to the UK & USA, http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-10-04/government-says-no-imminent-terror-threat-alarmist-response-not-helpful.html
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@mark wrote:
Half the time the authorities over-react just so they can be seen to be doing something.
I’ll let you into a secret about the airport security checks in the UK. What they are really designed to do is stop you smuggling your sense of humour out of the country.
The biggest over-reaction of them all is the “War on Terror”. The US has reacted as if a handful of cavemen pose an existential threat.
What do you suggest they do, lighten up and let in the shoe bombers et al! I hate air travel now but I know who to blame….Muslim terrorists, not USA/UK border control ❗
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I don’t believe anything any of them say. I do believe governments have used the fear of terrorism to impose unacceptable control and intrusion into ordinary people’s lives, and what frisking little white haired old ladies in wheelchairs achieves is anyones guess, oops I nearly forgot the power trip it gives the moronic security staff, after all lets not tackle a really dodgy looking passenger they may shout the ‘d’ word and make a fuss. Everyone knows where the potential problems are but because of political correctness we all have to suffer these indignities.
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FWIW (not much 😀 ), I think that they truth is somewhere between the to positions, I think that governments have greatly exasperated the threat to pass legislation & justify the normally unacceptable, and also as a diversion from other sticky issues (like the economy). It seems to me that GW Bush was totally into all this, and that Blair went along with it.
Reminds me of this poster:
I also feel that there are those in large business that are good at manipulating the potential threats to sell product (ID cards, body scanners…)
However, I do know that there are real threats too, and my family has been on the receiving end of terrorism. So, IMHO the threat is real, but not actually anything like as large as the TV & press coverage would make us think.
I also feel that the only way to resolve these issues is for the belligerents to talk. It seems to me that it is impossible to “fight terrorism”, instead you have to settle to disputes, and learn to live with one another. I guess Northern Ireland is a good example of this approach.
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Not sure why anyone would scoff at a terrorist threat, well perhaps a leftist student or an idiot. Not as if terrorist attacks haven’t happened before is it 🙄 Right now home grown terrorists, born in Germany, UK etc are training and looking for security loopholes. Remember Mumbai ❓ Any large hotel in Europe could suffer the same
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I don’t think anyone is scoffing at terrorism. I was in Tripoli with a very young family when the Americans decided to drop a load of bombs on the city, I don’t suppose people really think that was an act of terrorism but I do and the justification for it was unfounded and later admitted. People were killed and we are thankful we were not, just scared for quite a while.
My daughter was in Manchester city centre and outside Kendals department store when the city was blown up by the IRA, she was blown off her feet but again luckily escaped any serious harm but she was very frightened and saw things she should never had to experience.
However I think the scaremongering and control in the name of security on ordinary people is unacceptable. As I have said before the authorities have a pretty good idea where the current threats lie (everyone does), homegrown or not they tend to come from similar cultural backgrounds and the use of profiling should be accepted, this is not racist but reality.
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