Poetry Corner: The terrorists won
When all your communication data is swept up by the secret services
The terrorists won.
When governments lie to hide the fact
The terrorists won.
When Brazilian electricians are shot dead on the tube
The terrorists won.
When you have eleven new anti-terrorism bills go through Parliament inside ten years, each one expanding on the last,
The terrorists won.
When armed police force women on a beach to strip
The terrorists won.
When people are snatched off the street, hawked around for money and eventually locked up in Cuba without charge, let alone a trial, for fourteen years
The terrorists won.
When minimising language like ‘extraordinary rendition’ or ‘enhanced interrogation’ is used to make your excesses seem less harmful
The terrorists won.