Friday, August 06, 2004
Let's Get 'Em
I can still remember the first few days after 9/11 when the country and the world were united in our cause to find those responsible. Then came the anthrax attack. The U.S. couldn't catch a break. Everywhere we turned we saw terrorism. It was a very uncertain time. For the first time, we viewed ourselves as vulnerable. Our leaders leveled accusations, made promises, and quickly embarked on a noble journey. The "War on Terror" was under way.
That was almost three years ago and our original goals still have not been met. Not to worry though, because in this election year we can expect to see a renewed interest in the safety of our citizens. Take note of the terror arrests lately. Everywhere you turn in the news these days there are reports of terror suspects in custody (like here, here, here, and here in today's newspapers alone). Not only that, we are now seriously pursuing the person responsible for the anthrax attacks. What's that old saying? Better late than never?
Why now? To me it seems too convenient. The Republican Convention will be taking place in a few weeks and I expect to hear about these arrests at least as often as we heard about John Kerry's Vietnam service. They are going to parade these arrests and investigations around the stage in order to prove that we're fighting hard and making progress. (I still half expect to see bin Laden brought in from the back in shackles.)
The question I have is this: Why didn't these things happen three years ago? Had we been this aggressive three years ago, instead of detouring into Iraq, we may still have the support of the rest of the world. Al Qaeda may be in shambles. We may have even found bin Laden by now.
This type of aggressive attack on al Qaeda was promised to us three years ago. It is now taking place for political gain. The Bush administration is banking that people will have the attitude of "what have you done for me lately." I say it's too little too late.
That was almost three years ago and our original goals still have not been met. Not to worry though, because in this election year we can expect to see a renewed interest in the safety of our citizens. Take note of the terror arrests lately. Everywhere you turn in the news these days there are reports of terror suspects in custody (like here, here, here, and here in today's newspapers alone). Not only that, we are now seriously pursuing the person responsible for the anthrax attacks. What's that old saying? Better late than never?
Why now? To me it seems too convenient. The Republican Convention will be taking place in a few weeks and I expect to hear about these arrests at least as often as we heard about John Kerry's Vietnam service. They are going to parade these arrests and investigations around the stage in order to prove that we're fighting hard and making progress. (I still half expect to see bin Laden brought in from the back in shackles.)
The question I have is this: Why didn't these things happen three years ago? Had we been this aggressive three years ago, instead of detouring into Iraq, we may still have the support of the rest of the world. Al Qaeda may be in shambles. We may have even found bin Laden by now.
This type of aggressive attack on al Qaeda was promised to us three years ago. It is now taking place for political gain. The Bush administration is banking that people will have the attitude of "what have you done for me lately." I say it's too little too late.
