Monday, April 26, 2004
Dumbed Down America: Bush as Environmentalist
Let’s flash back to 1983: Reagan is at a low point. The Republicans take several polls, find him weak in several areas, most notably education. So, they send Reagan on a ‘nation-wide tour’, where he gives twice-daily speeches on the topic. After that week they poll some more. Now, Reagan receives 60+ favorable results as to his education “policies.” No new policies; he just read some speeches.
So, Bush was sent to give some speeches this week on the environment. Never mind that they were all lies; this method is a tried and true one…unless it is attacked for what it is.
Maine environmentalists said the visit is a "greenwashing" of Bush's environmental record, which they say is regressive and harmful to public +health+. Several groups plan demonstrations outside the reserve to coincide with Bush's visit.
"This administration has undertaken a concerted, systematic, very vigorous effort to undermine or repeal every important environmental law protecting the people and the environment of the United States," said Brownie Carson, executive director of the Natural Resources Council of Maine.
Clean air has perhaps received the most attention in Maine. More than 13 percent of Maine children have asthma and the state has the second-highest rate of adult asthma in the country.
Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency listed more than 100 coastal Maine towns, including Wells, as places where there is a serious summer smog problem. http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=624&ncid=753&e=10&u=/ap/20040422/ap_on_sc/bush_visit
Maureen Dowd’s summary: In Bushworld, you can claim to be the environmental president on Earth Day while being the industry president every other day. http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/25/opinion/25DOWD.html?n=Top%2fOpinion%2fEditorials%20and%20Op%2dEd%2fOp%2dEd%2fColumnists%2fMaureen%20Dowd
Dumbed Down (2): Those Polls
Jim Lobe of Asia Times looks at those disturbing polls from the U of Maryland Program on International Policy Attitudes (last blog) that show that a high percentage of Americans still ascribe to the ‘Saddam had a major role’ in 9/11, that al-Qaeda and Saddam were buddies, there were WMD, etc. No surprise here: Those pathetically mis-informed were likely to vote for Bush.
Among the 57 percent of respondents who said they believed Iraq was either "directly involved" in carrying out the September 11, 2001, attacks on New York and the Pentagon or had provided "substantial support" to al-Qaeda, 57 percent said they intended to vote for Bush and 39 percent said they would choose his Democratic foe, Senator John Kerry.
Among the 40 percent of respondents who said they believed there was no connection at all between Saddam and al-Qaeda or that ties consisted only of minor contacts or visits, on the other hand, only 28 percent said they intended to vote for Bush, while 68 percent said their ballots would go to Kerry…
Among those who perceived experts as saying Iraq had WMD, 72 percent said they would vote for Bush, and 23 percent said they would vote for Kerry, while among those who perceived the experts as concluding that Iraq did not have WMD, 23 percent said they would vote for Bush and 74 percent for Kerry. http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Front_Page/FD24Aa01.html
Juan Cole looks at this phenomenon:
Why would so many Americans cling to patently false beliefs? One can only speculate of course. But I would suggest that the two-party system in the US has produced a two-party epistemology. Epistemology is the study of how we know what we know. If it were accepted that Saddam had virtually nothing to do with al-Qaeda, that he had no weapons of mass destruction (nor any significant programs for producing them), and that no evidence for such things has been uncovered after the US and its allies have had a year to comb through Baath documents-- if all that is accepted, then President Bush's credibility would suffer. For his partisans, it is absolutely crucial that the president retain his credibility. Therefore, rather than face reality, they re-jigger it to create a fantasy world in which Saddam and Usamah are buddies (as in the Jimmy Fallon/ Horatio Sanz skits on the American comedy show, Saturday Night Live), and in which David Kay (of whom respondents say they've never heard) never recanted his earlier belief that the WMD was there somewhere… www.Juancole.com
Elections and Effectiveness: Liberals Whine, Republicans Organize?
Many of us talk of this being the most important election, yet, typically, too many of us are limited to hand-wringing, while the Right organizes. We on the Left know how to talk to the converted and we’re skilled at expending much energy in attending very social demonstrations. And, again, we’re good at worrying. Meanwhile, as the NY Times (Matt Bai) magazine article captures, the Right organizes.
Rove and Mehlman gleaned a critical lesson from the 2002 Congressional and 2003 gubernatorial elections, Mehlman told me excitedly: the way to build a grass-roots movement is to get one volunteer to recruit several other volunteers, and so on, so that the organization is constantly growing, feeding off itself. The campaign provided various ways for people to volunteer, he said, and ''the big thing that brings them all together is viral activity.''
The viral method not only resembles Howard Dean's campaign; it also mirrors the marketing philosophy behind Amway. And just as Amway sells its new distributors ''the Toolbox,'' which contains all the necessary books and motivational materials to get you immersed in Amway culture, so, too, does the Bush campaign have its own kind of toolbox for recruits. It includes ''7 Steps to 72-Hour Success,'' a brochure that shows you how to create your very own ''magic chart,'' a color-coded time line for every activity in the campaign.
Another of the seven steps is to recruit Bush Team Leaders, or B.T.L.'s, as the campaign sometimes refers to them. These are volunteers who are given prizes, like a signed note from the president, for accomplishing six specific tasks, the first of which is to recruit http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/25/magazine/25GROUNDWAR.html?pagewanted=print&position=
2004 Elections: How to Help: Two ideas
The obvious need is to impact states that matter, i.e. not Massachusetts, where Bush will get well under 40%. Aside from spending time in swing states (New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Ohio, etc.)…
(1) A Dean Campaign veteran notes that she uses her daughter’s Florida address to lobby Florida media and legislators. Now if she registers there…
(2) My turning-90 aunt is in Ohio, and has some friends. So, I try to talk with her about their political leanings and how, if they are Kerry supporters, to ensure that they vote, and if not...
Others?
What’s Happening, Iraq:
June 30- “Limited Sovereignty”
There’s been relatively little reaction to the Friday news that the U.S. intends to limit the “sovereignty” that is to be bestowed on Iraq in 9 weeks. Like so much else in the post-invasion period, if this wasn’t part of such a tragedy, it would be laughable. From the NY Times ( Steven Weisman):
The Bush administration's plans for a new caretaker government in Iraq would place severe limits on its sovereignty, including only partial command over its armed forces and no authority to enact new laws, administration officials said Thursday.
These restrictions to the plan negotiated with Lakhdar Brahimi, the special United Nations envoy, were presented in detail for the first time by top administration officials at Congressional hearings this week, culminating in long and intense questioning on Thursday at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee's hearing on the goal of returning Iraq to self-rule on June 30.
Only 10 weeks from the scheduled transfer of sovereignty, the administration is still not sure exactly who will govern in Baghdad, or precisely how they will be selected. A week ago, President Bush agreed to a recommendation by Mr. Brahimi to dismantle the existing Iraqi Governing Council, which was handpicked by the United States, and to replace it with a caretaker government whose makeup is to be decided next month http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/23/politics/23DIPL.html?hp=&pagewanted=print&position=
As Maureen Dowd put it,
In Bushworld, we can create an exciting Iraqi democracy as long as it doesn't control its own military, pass any laws or have any power.. And,
In Bushworld, we went to war to give Iraq a democratic process, yet we disdain the democratic process that causes allies to pull out troops.
It looks like the Pentagon’s boy, Ahmed Chalabi, will be pushed aside along with the rest of the Governing Council. Ending their existence, however it’s packaged, is an admission that the approach of the past year- making them the foundation of a new government- has indeed failed. Wise move, pathetic commentary. From the Washington Post (Robin Wright Walter Pincus)
The United States and the top U.N. envoy to Iraq have decided to exclude the majority of the Iraqi politicians the U.S.-led coalition has relied on over the past year when they select an Iraqi government to assume power on June 30, U.S. and U.N. officials said yesterday.
The latest shift in policy comes as the U.S.-led coalition has to resolve some contentious and long-standing issues before the transfer takes place. Earlier this week, the coalition moved to allow former Baath Party members and military officers to return to government jobs.
At the top of the list of those likely to be jettisoned is Ahmed Chalabi, a Shiite politician who for years was a favorite of the Pentagon and the office of Vice President Cheney, and who was once expected to assume a powerful role after the ouster of Saddam Hussein, U.S. officials acknowledged. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A37921-2004Apr23.html
Exiting:
Some countries’ troops, ngo’s, and now the media find Iraq to be too scary a place for ongoing operations.
The BBC has dramatically scaled back its staff in Iraq and banned programme-makers from organising any new trips there amid the deteriorating security situation.
Just two reporters, David Willis and Dominic Hughes, and a small team of technical staff remain in the corporation's Baghdad bureau after Caroline Hawley and Barbara Plett left the country. http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1201992,00.html
Another government has been a tad destabilized.
The defense minister of Denmark has stepped down -- and he appears to be another casualty of the flap over pre-Iraq-War intelligence.
The resignation came as Danish lawmakers questioned military intelligence reports used by the government to justify its support for the invasion of Iraq.
The defense chief (Svend Aage Jensby) said there'd been a "smear campaign" by critics who said Denmark's government had lied about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.
Denmark has nearly 500 troops in Basra and a nearby town about 250 miles southeast of Baghdad. http://www.whotv.com/Global/story.asp?S=1810352
Republican Disunity / Anger re Iraq $
Not all is happy in the Republican camp. One such report from the AP
With bills piling up from the deepening war in Iraq, Republicans in Congress complained Wednesday that the Bush administration's plans to put off a request for more money until early next year is unrealistic.
The war is costing about $4.7 billion a month, officials said.
The complaints among Republicans that the administration has failed to own up to the soaring costs of the war reflect growing political strains over the war and the looming elections. If the administration is indeed forced to ask for more money, Republicans would prefer to see that happen while the election is months away.
In surprisingly sharp terms, members of the House Armed Services Committee criticized the administration's plan to wait to seek additional money until after the election. http://www.startribune.com/stories/587/4735911.html
But, really, how do we get out?
Kerry has made clear he too is committed to stay the course, though with a broader coalition. But some are thinking about how to get out. One such notion, from Peter Galbraith who proposes basically a de facto partition of the country, something akin to the old Yugoslavia, with three highly autonomous republics within a loose national government. One idea, amongst the few. http://www.nybooks.com/articles/17103
What Hath We Wrought? Jihad!
Nothing surprising here, as more European-based Muslims have been radicalized. From Monday’s NY Times (Patrick Tyler, Don Van Natta, Jr.)
The call to jihad is rising in the streets of Europe, and is being answered, counterterrorism officials say.
In this former industrial town north of London, a small group of young Britons whose parents emigrated from Pakistan after World War II have turned against their families' new home. They say they would like to see Prime Minister Tony Blair dead or deposed and an Islamic flag hanging outside No. 10 Downing Street.
They swear allegiance to Osama bin Laden and his goal of toppling Western democracies to establish an Islamic superstate under Shariah law, like Afghanistan under the Taliban. They call the Sept. 11 hijackers the "Magnificent 19" and regard the Madrid train bombings as a clever way to drive a wedge into Europe. http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/26/international/europe/26EURO.html?hp=&pagewanted=print&position=
As Maureen Dowd, put it
In Bushworld, we're making progress in the war on terror by fighting a war that creates terrorists.
Touch Screen Voting: More Doubts; But What’s Being Done?
A growing number of federal and state legislators are expressing doubts about the integrity of the ATM-like electronic voting machines that at least 50 million Americans will use to cast their ballots in November.
Computer scientists have long criticized the so-called touchscreen machines as not being much more reliable than home computers, which can crash, malfunction and fall prey to hackers and viruses.
Now, a series of failures in primaries across the nation has shaken confidence in the technology installed at thousands of precincts. Despite reassurances from the machines' makers, at least 20 states have introduced legislation requiring a paper record of every vote cast.
On Thursday, a key California panel unanimously recommended banning a popular Diebold Inc. paperless touchscreen model - a move that could force Diebold and other manufacturers to overhaul their business practices nationwide. Secretary of State Kevin Shelley, who said Diebold glitches "jeopardized the outcome" of the March 2 primary, has until April 30 to decide whether to decertify Diebold and possibly other touchscreen terminals in California. http://www.starbanner.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040424/NEWS/204240320/1009/BUSINESS&template=printart
Raising Doubts about Kerry
Aside from Republican attack ads, we have the media doing its part. Sunday’s NY Times had a large article on Teresa’s finances. Worse was Saturday’s front page story on whether Kerry attended a meeting in 1971 that included incendiary talk. This just two days after media gave a veteran ideologue-hack space for his renewed charge that Kerry disgraced the uniform, one day after saying questions were raised about one of his medals. Then there’s another one today on whether he threw away his ribbons or medals. Such credibility problems! Oh, that liberal media.
Saturday’s:
…questions were raised last month about whether a 27-year-old John Kerry had attended a Kansas City meeting of Vietnam Veterans Against the War where the assassination of senators was discussed, the Kerry presidential campaign went into action.
It accepted the resignation of a campaign volunteer in Florida, Scott Camil, the member of the antiwar group who raised the idea in November 1971 of killing politicians who backed the war. The campaign pressed other veterans who were in Kansas City, Mo., 33 years ago to re-examine their hazy memories while assuring them that Mr. Kerry was sure he had not been there…
Two weeks later, he married Julia Thorne, and on a trip to Europe with his new bride, Mr. Kerry, the 26-year-old ex-lieutenant took a taxicab from Paris to a suburban villa. The son of a diplomat, Mr. Kerry had managed to arrange a private meeting with North Vietnamese and Vietcong emissaries to the peace talks.
He says he does not remember who else was in the room except for Nguyen Thi Binh, the Vietcong spokeswoman in Paris, who was then bedeviling the Nixon administration by issuing peace proposals it considered little more than propaganda. http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/24/politics/campaign/24VET.html
As Maureen Dowd put it,
In Bushworld, you get to strut around like a tough military guy and paint your rival as a chicken hawk, even though he's the one who won medals in combat and was praised by his superior officers for fulfilling all his obligations.
-R
Let’s flash back to 1983: Reagan is at a low point. The Republicans take several polls, find him weak in several areas, most notably education. So, they send Reagan on a ‘nation-wide tour’, where he gives twice-daily speeches on the topic. After that week they poll some more. Now, Reagan receives 60+ favorable results as to his education “policies.” No new policies; he just read some speeches.
So, Bush was sent to give some speeches this week on the environment. Never mind that they were all lies; this method is a tried and true one…unless it is attacked for what it is.
Maine environmentalists said the visit is a "greenwashing" of Bush's environmental record, which they say is regressive and harmful to public +health+. Several groups plan demonstrations outside the reserve to coincide with Bush's visit.
"This administration has undertaken a concerted, systematic, very vigorous effort to undermine or repeal every important environmental law protecting the people and the environment of the United States," said Brownie Carson, executive director of the Natural Resources Council of Maine.
Clean air has perhaps received the most attention in Maine. More than 13 percent of Maine children have asthma and the state has the second-highest rate of adult asthma in the country.
Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency listed more than 100 coastal Maine towns, including Wells, as places where there is a serious summer smog problem. http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=624&ncid=753&e=10&u=/ap/20040422/ap_on_sc/bush_visit
Maureen Dowd’s summary: In Bushworld, you can claim to be the environmental president on Earth Day while being the industry president every other day. http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/25/opinion/25DOWD.html?n=Top%2fOpinion%2fEditorials%20and%20Op%2dEd%2fOp%2dEd%2fColumnists%2fMaureen%20Dowd
Dumbed Down (2): Those Polls
Jim Lobe of Asia Times looks at those disturbing polls from the U of Maryland Program on International Policy Attitudes (last blog) that show that a high percentage of Americans still ascribe to the ‘Saddam had a major role’ in 9/11, that al-Qaeda and Saddam were buddies, there were WMD, etc. No surprise here: Those pathetically mis-informed were likely to vote for Bush.
Among the 57 percent of respondents who said they believed Iraq was either "directly involved" in carrying out the September 11, 2001, attacks on New York and the Pentagon or had provided "substantial support" to al-Qaeda, 57 percent said they intended to vote for Bush and 39 percent said they would choose his Democratic foe, Senator John Kerry.
Among the 40 percent of respondents who said they believed there was no connection at all between Saddam and al-Qaeda or that ties consisted only of minor contacts or visits, on the other hand, only 28 percent said they intended to vote for Bush, while 68 percent said their ballots would go to Kerry…
Among those who perceived experts as saying Iraq had WMD, 72 percent said they would vote for Bush, and 23 percent said they would vote for Kerry, while among those who perceived the experts as concluding that Iraq did not have WMD, 23 percent said they would vote for Bush and 74 percent for Kerry. http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Front_Page/FD24Aa01.html
Juan Cole looks at this phenomenon:
Why would so many Americans cling to patently false beliefs? One can only speculate of course. But I would suggest that the two-party system in the US has produced a two-party epistemology. Epistemology is the study of how we know what we know. If it were accepted that Saddam had virtually nothing to do with al-Qaeda, that he had no weapons of mass destruction (nor any significant programs for producing them), and that no evidence for such things has been uncovered after the US and its allies have had a year to comb through Baath documents-- if all that is accepted, then President Bush's credibility would suffer. For his partisans, it is absolutely crucial that the president retain his credibility. Therefore, rather than face reality, they re-jigger it to create a fantasy world in which Saddam and Usamah are buddies (as in the Jimmy Fallon/ Horatio Sanz skits on the American comedy show, Saturday Night Live), and in which David Kay (of whom respondents say they've never heard) never recanted his earlier belief that the WMD was there somewhere… www.Juancole.com
Elections and Effectiveness: Liberals Whine, Republicans Organize?
Many of us talk of this being the most important election, yet, typically, too many of us are limited to hand-wringing, while the Right organizes. We on the Left know how to talk to the converted and we’re skilled at expending much energy in attending very social demonstrations. And, again, we’re good at worrying. Meanwhile, as the NY Times (Matt Bai) magazine article captures, the Right organizes.
Rove and Mehlman gleaned a critical lesson from the 2002 Congressional and 2003 gubernatorial elections, Mehlman told me excitedly: the way to build a grass-roots movement is to get one volunteer to recruit several other volunteers, and so on, so that the organization is constantly growing, feeding off itself. The campaign provided various ways for people to volunteer, he said, and ''the big thing that brings them all together is viral activity.''
The viral method not only resembles Howard Dean's campaign; it also mirrors the marketing philosophy behind Amway. And just as Amway sells its new distributors ''the Toolbox,'' which contains all the necessary books and motivational materials to get you immersed in Amway culture, so, too, does the Bush campaign have its own kind of toolbox for recruits. It includes ''7 Steps to 72-Hour Success,'' a brochure that shows you how to create your very own ''magic chart,'' a color-coded time line for every activity in the campaign.
Another of the seven steps is to recruit Bush Team Leaders, or B.T.L.'s, as the campaign sometimes refers to them. These are volunteers who are given prizes, like a signed note from the president, for accomplishing six specific tasks, the first of which is to recruit http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/25/magazine/25GROUNDWAR.html?pagewanted=print&position=
2004 Elections: How to Help: Two ideas
The obvious need is to impact states that matter, i.e. not Massachusetts, where Bush will get well under 40%. Aside from spending time in swing states (New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Ohio, etc.)…
(1) A Dean Campaign veteran notes that she uses her daughter’s Florida address to lobby Florida media and legislators. Now if she registers there…
(2) My turning-90 aunt is in Ohio, and has some friends. So, I try to talk with her about their political leanings and how, if they are Kerry supporters, to ensure that they vote, and if not...
Others?
What’s Happening, Iraq:
June 30- “Limited Sovereignty”
There’s been relatively little reaction to the Friday news that the U.S. intends to limit the “sovereignty” that is to be bestowed on Iraq in 9 weeks. Like so much else in the post-invasion period, if this wasn’t part of such a tragedy, it would be laughable. From the NY Times ( Steven Weisman):
The Bush administration's plans for a new caretaker government in Iraq would place severe limits on its sovereignty, including only partial command over its armed forces and no authority to enact new laws, administration officials said Thursday.
These restrictions to the plan negotiated with Lakhdar Brahimi, the special United Nations envoy, were presented in detail for the first time by top administration officials at Congressional hearings this week, culminating in long and intense questioning on Thursday at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee's hearing on the goal of returning Iraq to self-rule on June 30.
Only 10 weeks from the scheduled transfer of sovereignty, the administration is still not sure exactly who will govern in Baghdad, or precisely how they will be selected. A week ago, President Bush agreed to a recommendation by Mr. Brahimi to dismantle the existing Iraqi Governing Council, which was handpicked by the United States, and to replace it with a caretaker government whose makeup is to be decided next month http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/23/politics/23DIPL.html?hp=&pagewanted=print&position=
As Maureen Dowd put it,
In Bushworld, we can create an exciting Iraqi democracy as long as it doesn't control its own military, pass any laws or have any power.. And,
In Bushworld, we went to war to give Iraq a democratic process, yet we disdain the democratic process that causes allies to pull out troops.
It looks like the Pentagon’s boy, Ahmed Chalabi, will be pushed aside along with the rest of the Governing Council. Ending their existence, however it’s packaged, is an admission that the approach of the past year- making them the foundation of a new government- has indeed failed. Wise move, pathetic commentary. From the Washington Post (Robin Wright Walter Pincus)
The United States and the top U.N. envoy to Iraq have decided to exclude the majority of the Iraqi politicians the U.S.-led coalition has relied on over the past year when they select an Iraqi government to assume power on June 30, U.S. and U.N. officials said yesterday.
The latest shift in policy comes as the U.S.-led coalition has to resolve some contentious and long-standing issues before the transfer takes place. Earlier this week, the coalition moved to allow former Baath Party members and military officers to return to government jobs.
At the top of the list of those likely to be jettisoned is Ahmed Chalabi, a Shiite politician who for years was a favorite of the Pentagon and the office of Vice President Cheney, and who was once expected to assume a powerful role after the ouster of Saddam Hussein, U.S. officials acknowledged. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A37921-2004Apr23.html
Exiting:
Some countries’ troops, ngo’s, and now the media find Iraq to be too scary a place for ongoing operations.
The BBC has dramatically scaled back its staff in Iraq and banned programme-makers from organising any new trips there amid the deteriorating security situation.
Just two reporters, David Willis and Dominic Hughes, and a small team of technical staff remain in the corporation's Baghdad bureau after Caroline Hawley and Barbara Plett left the country. http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1201992,00.html
Another government has been a tad destabilized.
The defense minister of Denmark has stepped down -- and he appears to be another casualty of the flap over pre-Iraq-War intelligence.
The resignation came as Danish lawmakers questioned military intelligence reports used by the government to justify its support for the invasion of Iraq.
The defense chief (Svend Aage Jensby) said there'd been a "smear campaign" by critics who said Denmark's government had lied about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.
Denmark has nearly 500 troops in Basra and a nearby town about 250 miles southeast of Baghdad. http://www.whotv.com/Global/story.asp?S=1810352
Republican Disunity / Anger re Iraq $
Not all is happy in the Republican camp. One such report from the AP
With bills piling up from the deepening war in Iraq, Republicans in Congress complained Wednesday that the Bush administration's plans to put off a request for more money until early next year is unrealistic.
The war is costing about $4.7 billion a month, officials said.
The complaints among Republicans that the administration has failed to own up to the soaring costs of the war reflect growing political strains over the war and the looming elections. If the administration is indeed forced to ask for more money, Republicans would prefer to see that happen while the election is months away.
In surprisingly sharp terms, members of the House Armed Services Committee criticized the administration's plan to wait to seek additional money until after the election. http://www.startribune.com/stories/587/4735911.html
But, really, how do we get out?
Kerry has made clear he too is committed to stay the course, though with a broader coalition. But some are thinking about how to get out. One such notion, from Peter Galbraith who proposes basically a de facto partition of the country, something akin to the old Yugoslavia, with three highly autonomous republics within a loose national government. One idea, amongst the few. http://www.nybooks.com/articles/17103
What Hath We Wrought? Jihad!
Nothing surprising here, as more European-based Muslims have been radicalized. From Monday’s NY Times (Patrick Tyler, Don Van Natta, Jr.)
The call to jihad is rising in the streets of Europe, and is being answered, counterterrorism officials say.
In this former industrial town north of London, a small group of young Britons whose parents emigrated from Pakistan after World War II have turned against their families' new home. They say they would like to see Prime Minister Tony Blair dead or deposed and an Islamic flag hanging outside No. 10 Downing Street.
They swear allegiance to Osama bin Laden and his goal of toppling Western democracies to establish an Islamic superstate under Shariah law, like Afghanistan under the Taliban. They call the Sept. 11 hijackers the "Magnificent 19" and regard the Madrid train bombings as a clever way to drive a wedge into Europe. http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/26/international/europe/26EURO.html?hp=&pagewanted=print&position=
As Maureen Dowd, put it
In Bushworld, we're making progress in the war on terror by fighting a war that creates terrorists.
Touch Screen Voting: More Doubts; But What’s Being Done?
A growing number of federal and state legislators are expressing doubts about the integrity of the ATM-like electronic voting machines that at least 50 million Americans will use to cast their ballots in November.
Computer scientists have long criticized the so-called touchscreen machines as not being much more reliable than home computers, which can crash, malfunction and fall prey to hackers and viruses.
Now, a series of failures in primaries across the nation has shaken confidence in the technology installed at thousands of precincts. Despite reassurances from the machines' makers, at least 20 states have introduced legislation requiring a paper record of every vote cast.
On Thursday, a key California panel unanimously recommended banning a popular Diebold Inc. paperless touchscreen model - a move that could force Diebold and other manufacturers to overhaul their business practices nationwide. Secretary of State Kevin Shelley, who said Diebold glitches "jeopardized the outcome" of the March 2 primary, has until April 30 to decide whether to decertify Diebold and possibly other touchscreen terminals in California. http://www.starbanner.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040424/NEWS/204240320/1009/BUSINESS&template=printart
Raising Doubts about Kerry
Aside from Republican attack ads, we have the media doing its part. Sunday’s NY Times had a large article on Teresa’s finances. Worse was Saturday’s front page story on whether Kerry attended a meeting in 1971 that included incendiary talk. This just two days after media gave a veteran ideologue-hack space for his renewed charge that Kerry disgraced the uniform, one day after saying questions were raised about one of his medals. Then there’s another one today on whether he threw away his ribbons or medals. Such credibility problems! Oh, that liberal media.
Saturday’s:
…questions were raised last month about whether a 27-year-old John Kerry had attended a Kansas City meeting of Vietnam Veterans Against the War where the assassination of senators was discussed, the Kerry presidential campaign went into action.
It accepted the resignation of a campaign volunteer in Florida, Scott Camil, the member of the antiwar group who raised the idea in November 1971 of killing politicians who backed the war. The campaign pressed other veterans who were in Kansas City, Mo., 33 years ago to re-examine their hazy memories while assuring them that Mr. Kerry was sure he had not been there…
Two weeks later, he married Julia Thorne, and on a trip to Europe with his new bride, Mr. Kerry, the 26-year-old ex-lieutenant took a taxicab from Paris to a suburban villa. The son of a diplomat, Mr. Kerry had managed to arrange a private meeting with North Vietnamese and Vietcong emissaries to the peace talks.
He says he does not remember who else was in the room except for Nguyen Thi Binh, the Vietcong spokeswoman in Paris, who was then bedeviling the Nixon administration by issuing peace proposals it considered little more than propaganda. http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/24/politics/campaign/24VET.html
As Maureen Dowd put it,
In Bushworld, you get to strut around like a tough military guy and paint your rival as a chicken hawk, even though he's the one who won medals in combat and was praised by his superior officers for fulfilling all his obligations.
-R
