SUPER BOWL DRUG COMMERCIALS EMBODY LARGER BUSH AGENDA

The commcercials aired on Super Bowl Sunday linking American drug
users with terrorism made for a particularly baleful chapter in the
Bush administration's ongoing crusade to use Sept. 11 to emblazon a
conservative agenda with the colors of patriotism. Bush rose out of
the rubble of the WTC, and he has bounced back from a controversial
election to enjoy the highest approval ratings of any US president
since Roosevelt. With God, America, and some semblance of
international sympathy on his side, the Bush administration will ride
this patriotic wave to the shores of any country or policy that it so
pleases.

Bush is currently capitalizing on the heightened emotions, fear, and
frailty of the nation to push his personal political agendas in the
face of international sympathy and American patriotism. He is
prodding a prone people and his negligent opportunism should be
infuriating students at Washington University. In pugnaciously
polarizing every issue to "for us or against us," "West vs. East,"
and "'axis of evil' vs. Operation Infinate Justice", Bush is taxing
international sympathy and reinforcing ignorant and arrogant American
stereotypes.

Since September, Bush's rhetoric has mirrored bin-Laden's in its
religious overtures and blatant manipulation.

To speak against Bush in America displays an unfashionable and even
treasonous lack of patriotism, at least in the US. Internationally
Bush is a great leader, harnessing all the fear and frustration of
foreigners by sticking his face on the screen and talking the tough
Texan-line, alienating sympathizers and stirring up enemies.

Just as the term jihad has been perverted by bin-Laden to apply to
violent sacrifice not taught in the Koran, the loaded word patriotism
is being used to sell cars, beer, and the War on Drugs. As most of
America saw super-bowl Sunday, the national government aired a series
of ads that linked the War on Terrorism to the War on Drugs.
Mimicking a MasterCard commercial, these anti-drug ads claimed that
American drug users were responsible for funding terrorist
organizations. This may apply to the 10% of poppy-processed drugs
(opium and heroin) sold in the US from that area, but the claim is
not applicable to anything approaching a sizable percentage of the
drug use in this country.

Most anti-ads use scare tactics, but these anti-drug ads aired during
the Super Bowl tapped into fear while simultaneously pulling a
patriotic guilt trip on socially conscious users, again polarizing
drug usage to pit the clean American patriot versus the
substance-using terrorist sympathizer. According to The Washington
Post, the $3.5 million dollars spent on these commercials comes out
of the $10 million dollars allotted for just that: uniting two
domestic wars.

This is an example of how fear acts like a snowball; gaining support,
saturation, and controversial issues as it speeds down Capitol Hill
and throughout society. Bush is having a heck of a time throwing snow
around, but let's wait to see how long it is until his fingers get
cold. He has thick gloves though, for the aforementioned $10 million
dollars is nothing compared to the total $180 million dollars set
aside for a PR campaign for the War on Drugs.

This attack on American drug-users, and Bush's expanding
international agenda, are the first signs of America spreading blame
beyond an illusive and infamous bin Laden. It is about time he shared
the limelight gallows, but if anyone should take blame it should be
Bush Sr. for funding, training, and endorsing the Taliban and
bin-Laden's insurrections against the Soviet Union. Conscientious and
patriotic students should question our representation. They should
ask why drug users are tagged for funding terrorism while the CIA,
car companies, and military contractors have pro-America PR campaigns.

These tactics are reminiscent of the McCarthy era, only terrorism has
replaced communism as America's outside and unifying threat. Pull the
tails of the American public to wag the dog.

While Bush's polarized porkbarreling of private agendas is not
contained to the War on Drugs, it is one of the most controversial
domestic topics today. Such subtle and subversive steps call for
conscious skepticism in the face of sweeping patriotism so that
politicians don't pour any more water on a raging grease-fire. To
keep America rolling, as GM so eloquently corrupted, people need to
challenge the simple and the rash to remain bold and free.