The more you tighten your grip, Tarkin, the more star systems will slip through your fingers.

I hesitate to take too many political lessons from the Star Wars series of movies. Having said that, I find the quote above very much on point. After this week's bomb attacks in Brussels, various Republican pants-wetters candidates for President were calling for "law enforcement to patrol and secure Muslim neighborhoods before they become radicalized" or waterboarding suspects.

This may be perhaps obvious, but I think such ideas are both un-American and counterproductive. The gist of the Tarkin quote is that the more one creates an "us vs. them" environment, the more likely it is that "them" will either cooperate with "our" enemies or at least not cooperate with us. We see this today in the inner cities, where police overreach makes people, even crime victims, reluctant to cooperate with the police. What is needed is intelligent action, not stupid panic.

ETA: Wise words from an immigrant living in Brussels.

ETA #2: What she said about the stupidity of expecting Obama to run home because of the attack in Belgium.