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Born at the Crest of the Empire

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

And now the choreographed follow on

So, today, Bush makes a speech saying Al Qaeda in Iraq is gonna getcha, and by nightfall, a spokesman of greater credibility just coincidentally appears to reinforce that message.
A top U.S. military commander said Tuesday he believes there are al-Qaida cells in the United States — or people working to create them — and the military needs to triple its response teams to counter a growing threat of attack.....

"I believe there are cells in the United States, or at least people who aspire to create cells in the United States," Renuart said in an interview with The Associated Press. "To assume that there are not those cells is naive and so we have to take that threat seriously."

As for attacks, he added: "Am I concerned that this will happen this summer? I have to be concerned that it could happen any day."


This is shameful.

Later: And this, "Airports warned about terror dry runs."

(CBS/AP) "U.S. officials stress that this is a routine advisory – one of about 90 similar "bulletins" the TSA has circulated to its workers since January."

But this one, issued July 20th, happens to get coverage today.

posted by mikevotes at 9:07 PM

12 Comments:

  • Bush could do a better job selling the war. We're in this thing though, and I believe it's the right thing to do!

    By Blogger AmPowerBlog, at 9:13 PM  

  • Fair enough.

    I don't know if you're referring to Iraq or the broader challenges of terrorism.

    I'm not a big fan of the former. I think we need to reduce our role in Iraq as it is creating as many or more terrorists than we are combating (not to mention training the the ones that do 6 months and leave.)

    I don't have the silver bullet solution in Iraq, but I believe our current stance is causing more problems in the more broad terror problems than it's resolving.

    I don't think you can responsibly just yank everybody out, but what the US is doing now is counterproductive.

    We should be working to deflate the Al Qaeda movement, not adding kinetic energy to their side.

    I disagree, but thanks for the comment.

    By Blogger mikevotes, at 9:28 PM  

  • Hehe, they're just lubing you up for the vicious ass rape (think 9/11) you're about to get. And then, all fingers will point to [insert random Mid Eastern country - Israel]. Funny stuff.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 12:12 AM  

  • Come on now, don't wuss out on me, here. Which country?

    By Blogger mikevotes, at 8:37 AM  

  • Saying we need to stabilize Iraq and saying we need to continue to follow Bush's war strategy are not the same thing. Indeed, I think they're mutually exclusive.

    At the end of the day we've brought Iraqi politicians to the river. We're now trying to beat them into drinking. Good luck.

    By Blogger -epm, at 8:47 AM  

  • Yeah. I'm just going to keep repeating that the Bush administration is implementing a military policy to try and effect a political change.

    It's the wrong tool.

    (but at this point, there's nothing left available. There is no State Dept.)

    By Blogger mikevotes, at 8:50 AM  

  • "I'm just going to keep repeating that the Bush administration is implementing a military policy to try and effect a political change."

    This is the mindset. Beat them enough and they will see reason. Never works.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 9:13 AM  

  • It's like the old cartoon... "the beatings will continue until morale improves."

    I've been critical of the US in its handling of Iraq, but stepping back a bit I'm wondering what is the rest of the world willing to do? If the American Dictator isn't moved by the will of the vast majority of his subjects, er citizens, the will he be moved my a confrontation with his allies? Not that the EU will do anything, but isn't the US action in Iraq -- and the indigenous side effects of that action -- in the same league as Sudan?

    It'll never happen, but I'd love to see a united European-Arab coalition stand up to the American Dictator and say, "Enough. Go home. We're taking over now." Maybe that too just asking for a rearrangement of the Titanic's deck chairs...

    My point is: what is the rest of the world willing to do in and for Iraq?

    By Blogger -epm, at 10:32 AM  

  • I think the rest of the world feels as powerless as you do. The UN can't do much. The only opposition seems to come from China and Russia and a lot of people are scared of them too. In some ways it works like a huge protection racket.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 12:00 PM  

  • Anon, I really think it's because they have nothing else.

    They still haven't staffed the civilian reconstruction teams. (They're currently being partially manned by military civilian affairs officers.)

    The State Department hasn't shown up for the surge as promised, so the military is all that's left.

    ....

    EPM, No one on the world stage is going to step in on this administration if for no other reason than they don't want Iraq.

    Hell, we don't want Iraq.

    By Blogger mikevotes, at 1:51 PM  

  • "Hell, we don't want Iraq."

    Just the black sticky stuff underneath right?

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 2:06 PM  

  • Right.

    By Blogger mikevotes, at 3:03 PM  

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