A Problem with a Statist Response to Terrorism

There's the obvious problem that the State might turn totalitarian, as has been mentioned elsewhere. There's the equally obvious response that we won't have much in the way of freedom if the terrorists win. But there's an even bigger problem with a statist response.

What happens if terrorists infiltrate the State? In that case, a statist response will deliver us to our enemies even faster.

We should consider why we didn't become totalitarian during Cold War I. I suspect one reason we didn't become totalitarian then was that early on Richard Nixon and Joseph McCarthy emphasized the possibility of infiltration. (There was the minor problem that Nixon was corrupt and McCarthy was a wannabee dictator but they didn't do much permanent damage.) Maybe we need someone pointing out the same possibility today.

Repeat after me: “I have a list of 205 Saudi agents in the State Department…”