What has led the conservatives and their media flacks into such a frenzy following the emergence of a videotape purportedly made by Osama bin Laden? Are we being prepared for pre-Halloween trick-or-treating, or ought we be genuinely bothered about his continued presence in the world? At a White House press conference in March, 2002, President Bush acknowledged his lack of concern for bin Laden, stating "I don't know where [bin Laden] is," and "I truly am not that concerned about him." Coming on the eve of yet another 9/11 remembrance, is Osama only being trotted out as a scarecrow, to re-energize the popular fear upon which the state depends for its existence? If Bush is "not that concerned" about the man, why should the rest of us go into fits of delirium?