more on Yes, it CAN happen here. (Happening right now, in fact)

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: "Steven M. Bellovin" <smb () cs columbia edu>
Date: September 30, 2006 11:36:46 AM EDT
To: dave () farber net
Subject: Re: [IP] more on Yes, it CAN happen here. (Happening right  
now, in fact)

There's a fascinating OpEd piece by Robert Harris in today's NY Times on
a historical precedent : the ancient Roman republic.

        IN the autumn of 68 B.C. the world?s only military superpower was
        dealt a profound psychological blow by a daring terrorist attack
        on its very heart. Rome?s port at Ostia was set on fire, the
        onsular war fleet destroyed, and two prominent senators, together
        with their bodyguards and staff, kidnapped.

        The incident, dramatic though it was, has not attracted much
        attention from modern historians. But history is mutable. An event
        that was merely a footnote five years ago has now, in our
        post-9/11 world, assumed a fresh and ominous significance. For in
        the panicky aftermath of the attack, the Roman people made
        decisions that set them on the path to the destruction of their
        Constitution, their democracy and their liberty. One cannot help
        wondering if history is repeating itself.

The essay, at http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/30/opinion/30harris.html ,
is very much worth reading.


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