Chris's Rants

Sunday, March 28, 2004

He said, she said...

Watching Meet the Press this morning, I am struck by how rational Mr. Clarke's arguments are in responding to the wide-ranging attacks that the Dubya administration and its Republican co-consp... er, attack dogs have levied against him for the past week.

What I fail to understand is why the press gives soooo much latitude to the administration in the face of mounting and incontrovertible evidence that the war in Iraq has nothing what-so-ever to do with the "war" on terrorism! Anyone, such as Mr. Clarke, who has the temerity to suggest that the war in Iraq has in fact distracted us from addressing the root causes of terrorism, and from engaging in tracking down the key sponsors of terrorism is labeled as a "disgruntled employee", or has their credibility besmirched by an army of White House spokespersons.

The administration and the Republican party have cast the President as some sort of mythic hero, without whom the country would have collapsed into a heap of despair over the events of 9/11. Bullshit! Had the administration given the focus that it has from the first days to addressing terrorism as it has to figuring out how to topple Saddam, maybe we'd be getting somewhere. They continually suggest that no one other than Dubya will be effective in the "war on terrorism".

As to Senator Frist's assertion that it was Mr. Clarke who influenced the shifting of publication date for the book to coincide with the 9/11 Commission hearings, that is utter bullshit. No author has any influence over the publisher after s/he turns over the manuscript for publication. One could possibly fault the publisher for manipulating the release of the book to boost sales as profiteering on the plight of the victims of 9/11, but not the author, who would have had absolutely no say in any of the process or timing decisions, especially not a first-time author.

Why does the press, who should really know better, not call Senator Frist on his bullshit assertions? Why do they simply play the tape and cast it as fact when it is pure, unadulterated, character assassination; unbecoming of a Senator, much less the Senate Majority Leader?

Fortunately, the tide seems to be turning on the current administration and its policies as regards Iraq. If I were Dubya, I'd be worried (which may explain why they attack with such viciousness anyone who even suggests that the Dubya is not the great saviour of mankind against the scourge of terrorism).

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