Bush isn’t the only one in a bubble | ajc.com
An astounding 75 percent of Bush supporters still believe that Iraq was providing support to al-Qaida, according to a poll this month by the Program on International Policy Attitudes at the University of Maryland. Astonishingly, 72 percent believe that Saddam possessed WMD or major WMD programs at the time we invaded.
This is very disturbing.
CNN.com - In Idaho courtroom, terror war meets the First Amendment - May 28, 2004
A bespectacled computer whiz sits at the center of what civil libertarians are calling a confrontation between the First Amendment and the war on terror.
From a message board I frequent.
There are patently evil people in this world.
Strangely, I think this is the most dangerous idea that gets passed around these days. Not that there aren’t evil people, but I think lots of people think that there are lots of evil people (ie. large percentages of Muslims) and that they are inherently evil such that the only way to deal with them is confrontation. This black and white way of seeing the world is the cause of a lot of world suffering.
This may seem condescending or elitist, but it’s my personal belief that most Americans who focus on “the battle against evil” have had very little contact with people outside the US . Indeed, I think there is a very real correlation between the low percentage of Americans who have passports and our willingness to characterize large groups of foreigners as evil.
In reality, most people in the world are not that unlike us in that they have families, jobs, concerns about their safety, etc…As well, they have a certain amount of pride about their way of life, just like we do. If another country were constantly telling the Americans that they were the best country in the world and we should emulate them, we’d get really annoyed. When Americans get disenfranchised, see themselves as having few political outlets , we get dangerous (ie. Oklahoma City bombing). When Americans experience extreme poverty, they are susceptible to initiation into criminal activity (ie. inner city gangs).
People in other countries are similar. We’re all human and basic psychology applies….We tell other countries how great and important we are and expect it to have no effect on them. For example, we give far more value to American lives than Iraqi ones. I’m not saying we shouldn’t…just that the effects of doing so are predictable. We are far more wealthy than a lot of people in the world…again, not inherently bad, but something that has predictable effects.
I guess what I’m saying is that what gets lost in the idea of “there is evil in the world” is the idea that there are predictable things we can due to influence the level of evil in the world. Like invading a country where there are a few evil people and a lot of poor people with pride will likely create a lot more evil people. So the only solution in decreasing the amount of evil is to kill more of these evil people than you create. Doesn’t sound like a winning battle to me….
CNN.com - Amnesty condemns U.S. terror war - May 26, 2004
“Violating rights at home, turning a blind eye to abuses abroad and using pre-emptive military force where and when it chooses has damaged justice and freedom, and made the world a more dangerous place.”
Perhaps Inhofe has never been sorry for anything in his life?
CNN.com - GOP senator labels abused prisoners ‘terrorists’ - May 11, 2004
“I’m probably not the only one up at this table that is more outraged by the outrage than we are by the treatment,” Sen. James Inhofe said during a hearing on the Abu Ghraib prison scandal.
Bush is doing and saying the right things in distancing us all from these acts. What happened probably wasn’t on the level of maiming or torture, but it definitely creates more animosity and therefore more terrorism. What isn’t being said is that the types of “patriotic” rhetoric which is espoused these days makes things like this inevitable. This was a symptom, not the disease.
CNN.com - Bush expresses ‘deep disgust’ at prison photos - Apr 30, 2004
When asked about a potential worldwide backlash over the pictures, McClellan said, “It does not represent what we stand for, and I think the military has made it very clear that they are going to pursue – to the fullest extent of the law – these individuals.”
Apparently the White House is attempting to link ALL issues to terrorism.
CNN.com - Hughes rapped over abortion comments - Apr 27, 2004
“I think after September 11, the American people are valuing life more and realizing that we need policies to value the dignity and worth of every life,” Hughes said.
“And I think those are the kind of policies that the American people can support, particularly at a time when we’re facing an enemy, and really the fundamental difference between us and the terror network we fight is that we value every life,” Hughes said.
The Pope gets it….
CNN.com - Pope: Love must defeat terrorism - Apr 11, 2004
Pope John Paul told the world in his Easter message Sunday that a culture of love had to defeat terrorism and the “logic of death” and revenge in Iraq, the Holy Land and other places where conflict reigns.
MSNBC - U.S. Election is a Global Affair
Howard Dean’s statement that President Bush’s decision to invade Iraq was partly to blame for the death toll in Madrid. Sen. John Kerry repudiated the accusation, and his handlers got Dean to recant it, sort of.
But in his typically blunt way, the former governor of Vermont merely was voicing what most Democrats—including Kerry—probably believe, and that most of the rest of the world’s citizens take for granted: George Bush’s punch-in-the-nose method of dealing with terrorism will not work, indeed it will weaken democracies abroad and threaten America at home.
I don’t see how you can disagree with the below statement.
CNN.com - Long-distance duel: Kerry, Cheney spar on national security - Mar 17, 2004
“We need to use the tools of diplomacy as well as the tools of war,” Kerry said. “All of us support our troops. But if we had built a true coalition, they would not have to fight almost alone – and Americans would not have to bear almost all the costs in Iraq.”
From this CNN article, one might infer that rebuilding diplomatic alliances and having strong law enforcement against terrorists (ie. the Patriot act) are mutually exclusive and that this is what defines our presidential candidates. In reality, no such choice need be made. Kerry does talk about the Patriot act and how he would improve it, but the silence from the Bush camp about the role of diplomacy is astounding.
CNN.com - Officials defend Bush from Kerry criticism - Mar 14, 2004
“The point is that all the over the world … America is meeting with a new level of hostility – and there are relationships that have been broken,” Kerry told reporters in Pennsylvania.
The senator from Massachusetts said the Bush administration’s “arrogant and reckless foreign policy” has made America “less safe.”
…..Condoleezza Rice suggested on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that she believes Kerry would weaken the fight against terrorism if elected.
“If we’re going to roll back the Patriot Act, the people of America are going to have to know that they’re taking an enormous risk,” she said. “Those are the debates we’re going to have.”
I believe capturing Bin Laden is a very positive step in the war against terrorism. But if a tiny fraction of that effort were spent on diplomacy, it would go a long way towards reducing terrorism. Perhaps a public donation by the Bush administration to a worthy Muslim cause….that’s the kind of thing which will ultimately prevent terrorism.
CNN.com - High-tech snooping for bin Laden - Mar. 4, 2004
U.S. forces searching for al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden along the mountainous border between Pakistan and Afghanistan will soon implement high-tech surveillance tactics in the region, enabling them to monitor the area 24 hours a day, seven days a week, CNN has learned.
This article is yet another world opinion about how Bush’s arrogant war has caused more problems than it has solved.
This is an older article, but it echoes a lot of what is being said during the current presedential campaign…specifically, that the war has distracted us from economic issues which most Americans feel are more important.
This is a GREAT article on how Bush has managed to run up such a huge deficit. I don’t see how he can call himself a fiscal conservative. He appears to be a strange mixture of big spending on programs for niche interests. Great if you happen to agree with those niches… (ie. religious right)…but it sucks for those of us who have to pay for these policies. TIME.com: The Nanny in Chief – Feb. 02, 2004
Not that Farrakhan is the most neutral of figures, but it goes to show the widespread perception of America’s current role in the world and how it actually feeds terrorism. Exclusive Interview with the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan Pt. 2: “They saw him as a cowboy and an unrefined, unrepentant braggart overwhelmed with arrogance over the power of America to inflict ’shock and awe’ on America’s perceived enemies.”
Defense minister criticizes U.S. “radical neo-conservative ideas'’: ”‘The humiliation is exploited by fanatics,’ Alliot-Marie said, while urging ‘let us work together to eradicate blind violence, but also its roots.’ ”
Iraq Jokes - Late-Night Jokes About War on Iraq
“Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld had a press conference at the Pentagon. If you listen to him speak, it really makes you wonder what the f**k he’s thinking. [Shows clip of Rumsfeld threatening to hold Syria and Iran accountable for hostile acts against the U.S.] Do you see what he just did there? We’re in the middle of a war, and he’s starting another war. We’re already fighting Iraq and he’s like, ‘Syria, you want a piece?’ …There is nothing like a cantankerous old man who takes a hey-you-kids-get-off-my-lawn approach to foreign policy. The guy’s literally just like drunk swinging a broken bottle at people. ‘Hey Netherlands, you looking at me?’” —Jon Stewart
Sad but true