The threat of terror in the United States will be indefinite, war with Iraq is justified, and the operations in Guantanamo Bay are justified.
Robert Gates and Ward Connerly were able to agree on these three issues during the Jones Day Lecture, entitled “Balancing Civil Liberties and National Security,” in McFarlin Auditorium Tuesday night. Moderated by Charlie Rose, executive producer and host of the PBS show “Charlie Rose,” former CIA director Gates and founder and Chairman of the American Civil Liberties Institute Connerly fielded questions first from Rose and then from the audience. Question topics ranged from 9-11 to North Korea, mostly in relationship to civil liberties and homeland security.
“The world changed on 9-11 and continues to change today,” Rose said in his opening remarks. This idea became a theme in the lecture.
Connerly’s remarks focused mainly on America’s civil liberties. While he said he accepts current government measures, he fears the American people may be willing to give up more rights in the event of another attack.
“I think we are at a moment in time when we have to question how much we are willing to pay to be secure,” Connerly said.
Gates agreed with the idea of maintaining civil liberties but feels there are ways that are interests are protected.
“The congress, courts and media are the sure safeguards of our civil liberties,” Gates said.
Although Connerly said he is not willing to suspend any more rights than the country already has at this point, Gates argued that rights have been taken away in war time situations before and been restored. The question in this case according the panelists is whether the threat of terror will cease in order to restore those liberties.
Both men agree that the world has changed since 9-11 and that the United States is not likely to ever see a time similar to that before the attacks.
When it comes to the idea of waging war against Iraq, the men are also in agreement.
“We either do it now or live in fear for the rest of our lives,” Connerly said.
Gates said that it is better to act now before the situation gets out of control. In addition, he also said that he thinks that a majority of the American people don’t realize the unpredictability of rebuilding. He said he thinks the demise of Saddam will go pretty swiftly.
Before the discussion started, commented on the recent arrest of Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, one of Osama bin Laden’s right hand men.
“The one thing you can count on is the man won’t be physically tortured,” Gates said.
He said it is more likely that interrogators will use psychological techniques to get information from him.
Gates said he sees the arrest as an indication that the CIA is making significant progress in the war on terrorism, even if it is primarily behind the scenes. He sees this as a significant break in the effort to capture bin Laden.
Students and members of the community attended the lecture for several reasons, ranging from being fans of Rose to having an interest in international relations, and even being Tate season ticket holders.
Sergio Cruz, a junior studio art major, said he attended because he is currently in an international relations class and has been a fan of Rose for some time.
No matter what drew them to come, some audience members took away more than they expected.
“I came away feeling like Ward, his ideas about civil liberties, were much more reasonable than I initially thought,” said David Leedy, an MBA student who is also a member of the Dallas World Affairs Council.
A student forum was held earlier Tuesday where students had he opportunity as questions in a less formal atmosphere. A tape of the forum can be downloaded at www.tateseries.com.
