Friday, October 29, 2004
Dr. Evil Rides Again
Here's a sample of the current blogosphere thinking at the moment of this post on the return of the Wicked Osama. Let's begin with Juan Cole, who provides an extensive translation of what Bin Laden actually said. Cole comments: "On the one hand, it is a painful reminder that Bush dropped the ball, left the fight against al-Qaeda half-finished, and ran off to the Iraq quagmire, so that Bin Laden is still at large 3 years after he killed 3000 Americans and hit the Pentagon itself. That can't be good for Bush. On the other hand, because so many Americans confuse Bush's swagger and aggressive instincts with being 'strong on terrorism,' any big reminder that al-Qaeda is out there could actually help W. It shouldn't, but it may well."
The Guardian: "[T]he initial instinct is that it will be more helpful to George Bush than to John Kerry."
Josh Marshall: "I don't think the public's mind right now will react to bin Laden's reemergence in way people did in 2001, 2002 or even through much of 2003. Or in the way many in the press expect. A lot has changed. We'll know soon enough."
Electablog: "Resist the urge to predict what impact the new bin Laden remix will have on the U.S. presidential election. . . . If you are a sensible and reasonably intelligent supporter of either [Bush or Kerry], then this tape (or any other monologues from sociopathic mass murderers) will have no effect on your voting plans."
The Gadflyer's Fly Trap: "This of course has Kerry supporters worried...because apparently reminding people that terrorism exists makes it easier for FrankenCheney to tell us we'll all die . . .immediately . . . without Bush as our fearless leader brainstorming with 5 year olds while we are under attack. Yet, Kerry has made the argument quite effectively lately, as have many others like the famous "Jersey Girls," that we are in more danger right now because of the policies/failures of the mighty backflipping Andover Cheerleader-in-Chief."
My take is a bit less optimistic than my blogosphere buddies. I see it as a big gift for the Bush campaign which, after its warm-and-fuzzy final campaign ad was trashed by the Photoshop controversy, had already decided to return to all terror, all the time, even before the tape appeared. Given the laziness and pack mentality of the media, and the alluring way this new tape fits the "storyline" of the Bush presidency, I expect it to drown out everything else until Tuesday morning. Now I could be wrong. Perhaps it really will remind people more of Bush's failures than of his phony image as the only one who can save us. That's what many of the people I've quoted above are banking on, and as a result, they're counseling wait-and-see or maybe-it-won't-be-so-bad. All of them are smarter than I am. But I'm having a harder time with it than they are. Please share your impressions of the tape and its likely consequences by clicking "Comments."
Recommended Reading: Brad DeLong summarizes blogosphere reaction to something new that's surfaced at Bush rallies this week--"the Bush pledge," which is straight out of the 1933 Nuremberg playbook. To me, it's far creepier than anything Bin Laden said.
Here's a sample of the current blogosphere thinking at the moment of this post on the return of the Wicked Osama. Let's begin with Juan Cole, who provides an extensive translation of what Bin Laden actually said. Cole comments: "On the one hand, it is a painful reminder that Bush dropped the ball, left the fight against al-Qaeda half-finished, and ran off to the Iraq quagmire, so that Bin Laden is still at large 3 years after he killed 3000 Americans and hit the Pentagon itself. That can't be good for Bush. On the other hand, because so many Americans confuse Bush's swagger and aggressive instincts with being 'strong on terrorism,' any big reminder that al-Qaeda is out there could actually help W. It shouldn't, but it may well."
The Guardian: "[T]he initial instinct is that it will be more helpful to George Bush than to John Kerry."
Josh Marshall: "I don't think the public's mind right now will react to bin Laden's reemergence in way people did in 2001, 2002 or even through much of 2003. Or in the way many in the press expect. A lot has changed. We'll know soon enough."
Electablog: "Resist the urge to predict what impact the new bin Laden remix will have on the U.S. presidential election. . . . If you are a sensible and reasonably intelligent supporter of either [Bush or Kerry], then this tape (or any other monologues from sociopathic mass murderers) will have no effect on your voting plans."
The Gadflyer's Fly Trap: "This of course has Kerry supporters worried...because apparently reminding people that terrorism exists makes it easier for FrankenCheney to tell us we'll all die . . .immediately . . . without Bush as our fearless leader brainstorming with 5 year olds while we are under attack. Yet, Kerry has made the argument quite effectively lately, as have many others like the famous "Jersey Girls," that we are in more danger right now because of the policies/failures of the mighty backflipping Andover Cheerleader-in-Chief."
My take is a bit less optimistic than my blogosphere buddies. I see it as a big gift for the Bush campaign which, after its warm-and-fuzzy final campaign ad was trashed by the Photoshop controversy, had already decided to return to all terror, all the time, even before the tape appeared. Given the laziness and pack mentality of the media, and the alluring way this new tape fits the "storyline" of the Bush presidency, I expect it to drown out everything else until Tuesday morning. Now I could be wrong. Perhaps it really will remind people more of Bush's failures than of his phony image as the only one who can save us. That's what many of the people I've quoted above are banking on, and as a result, they're counseling wait-and-see or maybe-it-won't-be-so-bad. All of them are smarter than I am. But I'm having a harder time with it than they are. Please share your impressions of the tape and its likely consequences by clicking "Comments."
Recommended Reading: Brad DeLong summarizes blogosphere reaction to something new that's surfaced at Bush rallies this week--"the Bush pledge," which is straight out of the 1933 Nuremberg playbook. To me, it's far creepier than anything Bin Laden said.
