just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they’re not out to get you
If you are the somewhat paranoid type, at least when it comes to governments, why not scare the hell out of yourself and read this little piece by Paul Craig Roberts (Assistant Secretary of the Treasury in the Reagan Administration) which attempts to answer the riddle: with George W Bush’s popularity sinking ever lower, why are senior Republicans allowing him to push on with ever crazier and less palatable plans?
If you can get past the somewhat dubious 9-11 conspiracy stuff (or even if you can’t), Roberts’ piece is a chilling thought experiment if nothing else:
Once the US experiences new attacks, Bush will be vindicated. His voice will be confident as he speaks to the nation: “My administration knew that there would be more attacks from these terrorists who hate us and our way of life and are determined to destroy every one of us. If only more of you had believed me and supported my war on terror these new attacks would not have happened. Our security efforts were impaired by the Democrats’ determined attempts to surrender to the terrorists by forcing our withdrawal from Iraq and by civil libertarian assaults on our necessary security measures. If only more Americans had trusted their government, this would not have happened.” And so on. Anyone should be able to write the script.
It’s quite possible, given their current low esteem of their President, that Americans might blame him should another serious attack occur in the US.
I mean it’s hard to argue that Bush’s biggest contribution to history, the invasion of Iraq, had anything whatsoever to do with the “War On Terror”.
That’s the line I would take, if I were a Democrat.
Thanks a lot. I must have lost thousands of brain cells reading that article.
So you’re down to what, a couple of hundred?
Hmm…work’s blocking the first link due to “Alternative Journals”, whatever that means. They’re clearly Republican symathisers.
Not enough for them to do a census on themselves, that’s for sure
I think that’s possibly true, but it is possible to imagine it going either way.
I would love to read an in-depth analysis of the psychology and politics that differentiated the Spanish train attacks – which had a heavily negative impact on the government there – from other terrorist attacks which typically work in favour of the incumbent.