Would a US administration use terror alerts for political advantage?

[RBM]

Apparently so, as Tom Ridge (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 2 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.) claims.

Here's a pretty comprehensive picture on Salon (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 2 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.)
about the ramifications of dishonesty in government and how it's reported - or not - by the Press.

The ramifications of this journalist/government relationship, of course, are inputs to the political culture of the US.

To be clear, I expect the same behavior on the other side of the aisle, most unfortunately.

[Tocsin]

Would the US use terror alerts for political advantage ?

ROFLMAO.

I love rhetorical questions.

I guess you can file this in the "tell me something I didn't already know" folder.

You can place a sarcastic "Nooooooo... Say it ain't so!" sticker on it for good measure.

[LaoTzu]

Libs have been saying what Ridge now asserts for years.

But due to partisan garbage, the Cons. chose not to listen.

This is what will lead to the American decline... no question in my mind. True crimes against the public trust will go unwatched/unpunished.


To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 2 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

[daydreamer]

Libs have been saying what Ridge now asserts for years.

But due to partisan garbage, the Cons. chose not to listen.

This is what will lead to the American decline... no question in my mind. True crimes against the public trust will go unwatched/unpunished.


To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 2 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

if political parties are both wrong and necessary, then did we simply choose the wrong form of government?

[RBM]

@ daydreamer,

I don't think there is a 'right' form of government, myself.

Any manmade system will have some man try to subvert the system, at this point of Homo Sapiens development. The strategy at the species level seems to be 'muddle through'.

[Mader]

What is the motivation of people who, after serving in high levels of government, come out years later and 'see the light and tell us the real truth'?

they want to clear their conscience? nope, you cannot have a conscience at that level.
They are selling a book $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
They miss the press coverage.
They miss the power.
They are no longer the big man on campus.

I distrust folks who come out. I distrust the media because they only give time to the 'outcomer' who is on the correct side of politics. I do not buy anyone's books.

[RBM]

@ Lao Tzu

Ironic to read the Harper's piece (July 2008, Author (?)).

I am a regular reader of Sic Semper Tyrannis. (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 2 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.) Blog host W Patrick Lang reposted a piece titled "Drinking the Kool-Aid" (To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 2 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.)

The irony is in what the author says of the 'Koolaid' piece:

This was written in the autumn and winter 0f 2003/2004 and published in The summer number of "Middle East Policy" after "Harper's" who had commissioned me to write the piece refused to do so. pl

From the piece:


What does drinking the Kool-Aid mean today? It signifies that the person in question has given up personal integrity and has succumbed to the prevailing group-think that typifies policymaking today. This person has become "part of the problem, not part of the solution."

I see Kool-aid drinking as a symptom of the disease of 'Party'

[Cincinnatus]

I just wonder how long airports are going to remain at orange. It's been a long while, and seems like people just tune it out as background noise. Wouldn't this be like the boy who cried wolf?

[rickster]

Would a US administration use terror alerts for political advantage ?

Wot? Nobody heard of P.A.T.R.I.O.T yet?

[RBM]

What is the motivation of people who, after serving in high levels of government, come out years later and 'see the light and tell us the real truth'?

they want to clear their conscience? nope, you cannot have a conscience at that level.
They are selling a book $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
They miss the press coverage.
They miss the power.
They are no longer the big man on campus.

I distrust folks who come out. I distrust the media because they only give time to the 'outcomer' who is on the correct side of politics. I do not buy anyone's books.

So you distrust for the reasons stated. Let's say all of them are true. So ?

Does it blind you to what is said ?

I don't care for motivation in this case. What of the essence of message and the context of the practice at the time ?

[reb]

i love the Constitution, but i don't trust my government.

isn't that a bumper sticker? and it encompasses both parties. the quotes from founders in the first part of that Salon article are telling, i think. the original writings of the founders should be required teaching in schools; they are not, or are 'skewed' because they are not in sync with political plans.

'hey, look! King George is back!' yeah, and has been for some 30 years or so...even prior, in veet nam, as lyndon used to say. nasty, amoral, power hungry people are not what we need for 'government', and i include the current one as well.

[Tocsin]

I just wonder how long airports are going to remain at orange. It's been a long while, and seems like people just tune it out as background noise.

This is, of course, the real purpose of airport security rituals.

Any real terrorists by now are already familiar with these rituals, and if they wanted to, would find ways around them. Repeated tests of security measures have demonstrated repeated failures. Actual securuty is not the objective; the illusion of security is (among other things).

The function that these rituals really fill is desensitizing people to having their dignity violated, and get them used to rituals of submission to minor personal intrusion in an impersonal manner by people in uniform.

If you can train people to view one level of intrusuion as acceptable, then its easier to move on to the next level of intrusion.

[Night Runner]

The function that these rituals really fill is desensitizing people to having their dignity violated, and get them used to rituals of submission to minor personal intrusion in an impersonal manner by people in uniform.
And that's exactly why I don't fly. If and when some terrorism camp dropout decides to hijack the Greyhound bus I'm traveling in, at least I'll die laughing. :)

[LaoTzu]

if political parties are both wrong and necessary, then did we simply choose the wrong form of government?

Democracy only works with an involved AND INFORMED populace.

I think those who are most involved, are the least informed....

[thod]

The wrong form of government is party government. The objective becomes beating the opposition and not good governance. A good policy will be opposed simply to defeat them and make them look bad. The party system silences dissent and forces votes along party lines. It creates a dictatorship of first one party then the other. Bad policies are forced through by current majority and the combined opposition is too few to stop them. There is a reason for doing things in threes, for example the three branches of government. The remaining two will always be stronger than the one and exercise checks and balances. Yet America has fallen to democrats and republicans. Which house they sit in is immaterial, there are only two voices, not three. A king and a critic in alternating roles.

[zibber]

Clearly this has been going on forever and ever.

The whole notion of "organised terror", to begin with, is highly exaggerrated if not fabricated entirely. Before that, it was "the red threat".

This has been taking place since before most of us were born.

Distance yourself from corporate media. Scrape together facts from independent (ideologically varied) sources and attempt to form your own picture.

[Cincinnatus]

Clearly this has been going on forever and ever.

The whole notion of "organised terror", to begin with, is highly exaggerrated if not fabricated entirely. Before that, it was "the red threat".

This has been taking place since before most of us were born.

True, and ironically before it was the "the Red threat," it was "the red threat." How many people were taught to distrust, even fear, the natives while Manifest Destiny was taking hold?

[Prunesquallor]

That's hilarious. I thought everyone knew they already have.

[Nemesis]

That's hilarious. I thought everyone knew they already have.

What's not funny is that this means people actually fell for it...





Nemesis added to this post, 1 minutes and 1 seconds later...

Actually, no, it's still pretty damned funny. :laugh:

[meanlittlechimp]

I distrust folks who come out. I distrust the media because they only give time to the 'outcomer' who is on the correct side of politics. I do not buy anyone's books.

Did you do the same thing when Paul O'Neill (former Treasury Secretary) resigned and told everyone Bush's intention to invade Iraq as soon as he was elected, before 9/11 occurred?

This is how republicans can even exist. Willful ignorance.

The ones that bother reading books get embarrassed; and call themselves libertarians now. The non-readers show up at town hall meetings with AR-15s; calling Obama a communist. The old scare tactic word of the right, before terrorist.

if political parties are both wrong and necessary, then did we simply choose the wrong form of government?

How are both wrong, because one side gets caught lying repeatedly to justify their murder? Democracy was fine when your party was in office. Now you want a new system?

[Mader]

I have not read Ridge's book.

FoxNews says that the statement was made by the publisher and is completely contradicted by Ridge in the book.

Who is telling the truth???

That is why I trust noone who 'comes out' at this late date.

Watched Jon Stewart the other night - he was discussing the health care bill with some expert. The expert was explaining what the parts of the bill mean, and he was saying, literally, 'you're wrong'. Isn't she the expert? Isn't he the comedian? Tried to get into the bill myself but couldn't load it.

Watched Chris Wallace today. Talking about an advice booklet for the VA. He says that some very questionable parts were on the website and in use this year. The VA person said, no. it is on the website not used (?). She was the VA expert, he is a respected newsperson.

Neither example was a matter of you are mistaken, both were in black and white.

We have politicians denying parenting a child, finding money in the freezer, calling average citizens "mob", and such. The President says that the public option MUST be part of the health care, then he says it is not essential. The speaker of the house says the public option is not optional, the finance committee says the public option was never even on the table. Some congressmen and women are having town hall meetings, no matter how angry the public is, and others are too busy doing their book promotion. I am not picking on Rep. or Dem. both sides are the same.

So, who do we trust???

We can't afford to tuck our heads under and hope it all works out OK - this is about real life, this is about the future of the country - not 50 years in the future, 5 or 10 years.

[Tristan]

:thinking:
Would a US administration use a US administration using terror alerts for political advantage for political advantage?

[Tocsin]

:thinking:
Would a US administration use a US administration using terror alerts for political advantage for political advantage?

I didn't realize Tom Ridge was part of the Obama administration.