The President’s Finger

We would do well to remember the speech given by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Jan. 21 of this year. The topic of the speech was Internet freedom, and she stated that the free flow of information strengthens societies. Today, President Barack Obama indicated that a law which permits the president to shut down the Internet at the push of a button would be employed in “times of crisis or national emergency.”

Consider with me the slipperiness of this expression “times of crisis and national emergency.” And then imagine that, under this law, the globalized world that the Internet has built could be ended with the push of a button.

The story, as reported by news agencies, provokes laughter. One night, U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman dreamed up this bill, which grants President Barack Obama permission to shut down the internet for reasons of “U.S. national security.” And in fact, the idea progressed to a draft bill and became law as Lieberman’s dream blossomed into reality. This bill is an American imitation of the Zionist entity. For years, Lieberman has wanted to be able to pass a law granting the President absolute power to control the Internet. It allows the President kill the Internet at the touch of a button in the event of any threat to U.S. national security. As for who decides what form, shape or extent of danger the threat presents, this is subject to the will of the president and his security council.

Lieberman’s justifications for endeavoring to pass the law are what he calls internet security crimes, especially exploitation of the Internet by “terrorists” when preparing for attacks against American targets. We know that this entire issue is surrounded by ambiguity. There are those who assert that U.S. security agencies themselves are determined to keep the ‘terrorist’ threat alive and visible in the minds of Americans in order to promote their security agenda. This keeps the world in a state of panic, and it enables America to continue its control over every global hot spot by claiming the presence of a terrorist threat. In addition, U.S. authorities can exploit the presence of this enemy to weaken various parties and countries under the pretext of this threat.

All companies that offer Internet services will be required to submit to this law for reasons of national security, and any company who does not shut down their network will be fined. The strange thing is that large companies who conduct their work on the Internet welcome the law. They are guaranteed financial compensation in the event that they have to shut down their networks. The question here is: who will compensate the world and foreign corporations for any damage that might befall them if the president contemplates using his finger to press the button that shuts off the Internet?

Pressure groups and human rights groups strongly oppose this law because, according to them, it inhibits freedom of expression and makes America practice censorship of its people — the same censorship that China practices over the Internet. Human rights groups consider the U.S. government to be aiming to obtain control of the Internet by any means possible. And here is the catch: this law puts a chokehold on the entire planet, even as the Internet has become the life blood of so many human activities — everything from communication between lovers, the global network of communications and finance and probably the running of electricity and power plants.

Imagine how the world’s neck has been set into a noose at the control of Obama’s finger, and it will be within his power, as the result of a simple movement, to strangle the entire world.