Thursday, December 22, 2005
The White Flag
I've never doubted that the 9/11 terrorists did what they set out to do--they terrorized the bejeezus out of the American people. Now, that's not what everybody expected to happen. Remember how, in the weeks following the attacks, people said with straight faces that "everything will be different now"? Irony is dead, people will head back to church, and Americans will approach life with a new seriousness. That's what we expected, but none of that happened. The one thing that did happen is the one thing we swore we wouldn't allow--for a while, we were scared shitless. Never mind that we promised to stand strong, fight back, and never give in. Never mind that it was our president, He Who Shall Not Be Named, who promised it the loudest. We--and he--were quaking in our collective boots.
But here's the thing, see. Lots of us have gradually gotten over it. We understand that any given person is much more likely to be hit by a rogue meteorite than to be killed by a terrorist. The specter of terrorism isn't pretty, but we don't dwell on it.
You know who never got over it? The administration and its supporters. The Left Coaster had a stone brilliant post last night, in the form of an open letter to Harry Reid, in which Eriposte characterizes their response to their fear thusly:
Hey, I think I can finally get my head around the Democrats' 2006 slogan, the one I criticized a couple of months ago--"Together, America can do better"--provided they start prefacing it with "The Republicans are a bunch of cheese-eating surrender monkeys."
Recommended Reading: Atrios was especially good today on the subject of the administration's seriousness about waging a real fight against terrorism.
Also: Fox News anchor John Gibson, one of the major generals in the war on the war on Christmas, came completely unhinged on the air last night when a guest challenged him on the utter bogosity of the war. News Hounds (slogan: "We watch FOX so you don't have to") has the transcript.
I've never doubted that the 9/11 terrorists did what they set out to do--they terrorized the bejeezus out of the American people. Now, that's not what everybody expected to happen. Remember how, in the weeks following the attacks, people said with straight faces that "everything will be different now"? Irony is dead, people will head back to church, and Americans will approach life with a new seriousness. That's what we expected, but none of that happened. The one thing that did happen is the one thing we swore we wouldn't allow--for a while, we were scared shitless. Never mind that we promised to stand strong, fight back, and never give in. Never mind that it was our president, He Who Shall Not Be Named, who promised it the loudest. We--and he--were quaking in our collective boots.
But here's the thing, see. Lots of us have gradually gotten over it. We understand that any given person is much more likely to be hit by a rogue meteorite than to be killed by a terrorist. The specter of terrorism isn't pretty, but we don't dwell on it.
You know who never got over it? The administration and its supporters. The Left Coaster had a stone brilliant post last night, in the form of an open letter to Harry Reid, in which Eriposte characterizes their response to their fear thusly:
I fervently hope, that as the most prominent Democratic spokesperson, you will also hasten to point out the toxic message of support that Bush and his patsies send to dictators and communists everywhere with their actions. A message that:Let me make sure, Dear Reader, that you caught the money shot there:
A capitalist liberal (libertarian) democracy is merely a theory that is unsustainable under threat of war or terrorism
I strongly reject this terrible message and I urge you and the Democratic Party to do the same. I sternly reject the notion perpetrated by Bush and his cronies that somehow American's admired liberal democratic traditions cannot be sustained in wars and in the fight against terrorism. President Bush, in his words and actions, has demonstrated that he is always quick to raise the white flag of surrender and cut and run from America's fundamental governing principles and philosophies. The words and actions of Bush and his blind supporters in Government and the media, regrettably, help America's enemies perpetrate the myth that people worldwide should abandon dreams of liberal democracy because such democracy is not possible under threats to the people's security. I simply and soundly reject this false notion and act of surrender to terrorists and communist dictators everywhere, an act that also deceives all our children - the future of America - into believing that you cannot have a liberal democracy in this world as long as there are terrorists around.
I find it disappointing, but predictable, that with some notable exceptions, the reaction of Bush Republicans is one of surrender. I am saddened that their act of surrender to terrorists and communists around the world will lead even America's biggest fans to doubt the viability and stability of liberal democracies. History has shown that Bush's cronies are grievously wrong and that their cowardly views are a repudiation of America's great values. I urge you to remind Americans of this simple fact.
President Bush, in his words and actions, has demonstrated that he is always quick to raise the white flag of surrender and cut and run from America's fundamental governing principles and philosophies.Shorter Left Coaster: Throwing over the established Constitutional order isn't a hard necessity required by the circumstances of a changed world--it's a panicky act of cowardice.
Hey, I think I can finally get my head around the Democrats' 2006 slogan, the one I criticized a couple of months ago--"Together, America can do better"--provided they start prefacing it with "The Republicans are a bunch of cheese-eating surrender monkeys."
Recommended Reading: Atrios was especially good today on the subject of the administration's seriousness about waging a real fight against terrorism.
Also: Fox News anchor John Gibson, one of the major generals in the war on the war on Christmas, came completely unhinged on the air last night when a guest challenged him on the utter bogosity of the war. News Hounds (slogan: "We watch FOX so you don't have to") has the transcript.
