The Battle For Freedom

I'll admit that the picture below is a strange place to see a sign of hope, but that's what stuck me when I saw it. The picture is from an editorial at redstate.com written yesterday (9/18/2006) but I believe the photo was actually taken back in February of this year, during the infamous cartoon riots in the Muslim world.


I think what is so telling in the photo is the use of the word freedom. Note that it isn't America or George Bush or Jews but freedom. Often times in speeches by President Bush, the war on terror is likened to a battle for freedom and for western civilization as we know it. Such analogies are just as often derided as fear mongering; the supposition being that the President is using fear to justify his agenda around the globe.

But this photo says that (at least one) of the terrorists get it--provocative thoughts such as freedom are their true enemies. And while I have my doubts as to the chances of success for any particular policy, I don't have my doubts of the pervasive nature of ideas such as liberty and freedom. If the terrorists truly mean to defeat the idea people are allowed to live free, then they have already lost.