I’d just like for us to take 30 seconds to consider the pearl-clutching, the swooning, the fainting that would have taken place if Barack Obama, at any point in 21 months of RNC/Fox News character assassination, told anyone to f*ck off. And the lectures about civility that he, any Democrat and anyone to the left of John Yoo would have had to endure for the duration.

Done? Good. We now return you to the Dick Cheney F*ck-Off Festival, the Jack Kingston “Not Enough Southerners in the Cabinet” Hissy Fit and the David Broder “Democrats Must Reach Across the Aisle” Power Hour, already in progress.

The way in which that changed the nation, and set the agenda for what we had to deal with as an administration.

Translation: The moment that made it possible to do whatever the hell we wanted! Man, that was great!

Since Cheney doesn’t give a damn what anyone thinks about him, he can be much more honest than the rest of them… <shudder>

Anyone who has read The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein should be too shocked by that.
It’s the moment that gave them the power to do whatever they want and start ruling America based on fear.
And that fear caused us to give up SO MUCH…

I don’t find it surprising. This is an unusual glimpse into the mind of a celebrity psychopath.

This 2004 Rolling Stone profile is still one of the best synopses of Cheney’s career. His “success” over the last 8 years demonstrates the willingness of current Republicans to accept incompetence and authoritarianism as a necessary underpinning of their party.

I maintain that Kerry could have won if he’d run a two minute ad consisting entirely of Bush just sitting there on 9/11.  Perhaps a little sub window showing what was happening at the WTC concurrently.

See, what you people don’t understand is that many people admire Dick Cheney. I like the man. He kept my family safe from terrorist attacks the last several years. Who would thought since 9/11/01 we wouldn’t have been attacked again?

For him it probably was a bright spot: a golden opportunity to seize more power for the Executive Branch and state, to crack down on dissent and nonconformity, and to undermine the moral principles restraining much of the exercise of force of which the USA is practically capable.

What a sad and embarrassing eight years it has been for us. Lest we ever forget, this is how America reacted to a threat: the abandonment of its principles and the sacrifice of a lot of liberty for not even any security - only the illusion of it.

See, what you people don’t understand is that many people admire Dick Cheney. I like the man. He kept my family safe from terrorist attacks the last several years. Who would thought since 9/11/01 we wouldn’t have been attacked again?

We understand that, James. We also understand that those people are mainly peasants and authoritarians—the same sort of people who secretly worship their tyrant bosses.

As to who would have thought since 9/11/01 we wouldn’t have been attacked again, the answer is: basically anyone who knows how difficult it was to pull off that kind of operation. Of course, Atta and his fellow Islamic fantasists were also helped by the rank incompetence in the White House (e.g. ignored PDBs) and Cheney and Bush’s chummy relationship with the royal family that was blackmailed into providing some of the funding for the operation.

Again, though, I can understand why the sort of ignoramus who also thought Saddam was involved in 9/11 would also be unaware of Benjamin Frankin’s dictum on security and liberty.

Finally, I can understand why someone who “likes the man” (what that has to do with his competence I’m not sure) might also find nothing odd about his characterising 9/11 as the “highest moment in the last 8 years.” Manhattan residents like myself, who witnessed this “highest moment” with our bare eyes and two days later inhaled a noxious mix of burnt rubble and burnt humans don’t look at it quite the same way. So it’s not surprising that not many people in NYC “like the man,” let alone voted for his administration.

James, how would you know whether Dick Cheney has made you or your Leave it to Beaver family safer? Cheney has overseen a number of strategic errors and moral failures, which have undermined both America’s stature and capabilities in the world; we are less safe as a direct result of his leadership.

And by the way, Cheney and his thugs have never been interested in protecting your family or you, only his power over you, with 9/11 as a pretext to take that power over you with your complete consent.

Incidentally, I confess not to know whether Leave it to Beaver is a fair way to describe your family. I’m betting the odds, based on your near recitation of GOP cant rhetoric about protecting American families, which only applies to straight white men, their perky housewives, and 2 point whatever children.

Twenty-eight more days, twenty-eight more days…

“basically anyone who knows how difficult it was to pull off that kind of operation”

actually, in pre 9/11 days it wasnt difficult at all. As President said, ‘we have to be right 100% of the time’ .

“Cheney has overseen a number of strategic errors and moral failures”

Well, I think overall he’s done a damn good job.  I mean, it’s not like he’s for the legalized killing of unborn children like Obama and Biden are. Now thats a moral failure. It’s happens legally on our own turf, everyday, by the thousands.

I’m waiting for James to say “BDS” in a non-ironic context next.

But wait. Shortly after 9/11 we were attacked again. By domestic terrorists, so perhaps that doesn’t count, but tell the dead people that. And we’ve been attacked again repeatedly over the past 5-plus years, with 4000 american deaths and counting. Those deaths mostly took place in a foreign country, so I guess they don’t count either. Go tell those dead people that as well.

Maybe Cheney thought the question was about the high point of his popularity rating.

actually, in pre 9/11 days it wasnt difficult at all. As President said, ‘we have to be right 100% of the time’

According to the official accounts and analyses by experts, you’re absolutely wrong, James—the 9/11 attacks required an unusually large amount of funding for a terrorist operation (at least $900k by most estimates—most of it gained through blackmailing Bush and Cheney’s “friends” in KSA), years of planning, tight co-ordination, and general good luck (e.g. the target country having a fantasist “leader” who claims that anyone can be right “100% of the time”). By all credible accounts it was a once-in-a-lifetime attack that succeeded beyond its planners wildest expectations.

I’d suggest that you try reading the work of real experts on security, counter-terrorism and intelligence, but given your compulsion to include an off-topic anti-choice comment I can tell it would be hopeless. You just stick to accepting what your various big daddies (Cheney, Bush, your boss, your stockbroker, your preacher, and of course the Invisible Bearded Sky Man™) tell you without question, while the grown-up men (liberal and conservative) alternately mock and pity you for the born sucker you are.

I’d just like for us to take 30 seconds to consider the pearl-clutching, the swooning, the fainting that would have taken place if Barack Obama, at any point in 21 months of RNC/Fox News character assassination, told anyone to f*ck off.

Yes, but you see, if Obama said it, that would make him so aggressive, so dangerous and potentially violent, so… so… what’s the word I’m looking for here?

See, what you people don’t understand is that many people admire Dick Cheney. I like the man. He kept my family safe from terrorist attacks the last several years. Who would thought since 9/11/01 we wouldn’t have been attacked again?

You’re an idiot, James, as usual.

U.S. Figures Show Sharp Global Rise In Terrorism (based on report about 2004)

Spy Agencies Say Iraq War Worsens Terrorism Threat

So, in summary, terrorism is up and your own intelligence agencies conclude that the Iraq invasion has increased the danger to the US.  And your head is too far up your ass and your tongue too far up Chaney’s ass to deal with the real world.

Sorry, typo above: that should be $600k

A few amature pilots and goons could have pulled off 9/11 with ease.

Look at Ann Coulter destroy Al Franken in a debate on this every subject:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYV4D_jKepc

Wait…what about the anthrax attacks?
And the little Amish girls who were shot b/c they were girls?
And the UCC production of “Annie” that was shot up because they don’t hate homos enough?
And the refugees from New Orleans who were hunted like pheasants b/c they were black?
And all the other domestic terrorist acts that Cheney not only didn’t defend us from, but encouraged by his hatred and authoritarianism?

You know what’s kept us safe from another airline hijacking?  The fact that no American will ever again believe that hijackers want a ransom.  No American will ever believe that hijackers want anything other than to crash the plane, so no American will ever cooperate.

That, and deadbolting the pilot’s cabin door, which was something Al Gore suggested long before 9/11.

The rest of the bullshit and security theatre?  Authoritarian nonsense.  Our ports are still wide open, luggage is still unchecked, and civilian passengers are needlessly harangued.

Not to mention the little genocide done in our name.  Iraq not only didn’t attack us, but wasn’t capable of attacking us.  Everyone knew it, which is why we had to go in there alone.  The latest from the Lancet claims a minimum of 655,000 dead that wouldn’t have died under Saddam.  BushCo calls Darfur a genocide, but only 200,000 have died there.  What does that make us?  Not safer from terrorism, that’s for sure.

Al Qaeda Iraq not only didn’t exist before we invaded, it’s NOT THE SAME ORGANIZATION as Bin Laden’s Al Qaeda.  So there ya go—whole bunches of new terrorists whose sole aim is to hurt the US.

Thanks, Cheney!

—-Oh, and you missed Bill Kristol claiming that Cheney telling Leahy “Fuck you!” is “justice”.

OK, James is quoting Ann Coulter.  Can we ban his ass as too damn stupid to shake a stick at yet?

What about the attacks in England?  In Spain?  In India, where British and Americans were singled out and killed?  Those terrorist attacks don’t count, James?

A few amature pilots and goons could have pulled off 9/11 with ease.

As I said, keep believing your Big Daddies (or, in Coulter’s case, Big Daddy Transvestites). But don’t think that repeating the same reality-challenged statement over and over again will buy you any more credibility than it does Coulter.

The best “a few amature pilots and goons” could have done was hijack one by killing the pilots with boxcutters before learning the difference between piloting a turboprop trainer and a jumbo passenger jet—the hard way. And that wouldn’t accomplish the aims of a co-ordinated 9/11-style attack (namely, to make bed-wetters like yourself accept a reduction in their liberties on the basis of fear and ignorance that a one-time operation could be “easily” replicated).

You know what’s kept us safe from another airline hijacking?  The fact that no American will ever again believe that hijackers want a ransom.  No American will ever believe that hijackers want anything other than to crash the plane, so no American will ever cooperate.

It took a few mobile phone calls and less than an hour for the passengers on UAL 93 to understand that reality and take action. Of course, they weren’t brilliant strategerists (sic) with PDBs and security experts at their disposal, like James’ heroes Bush and Cheney.

I’m sure that, had James been on board, he would have been urging the other passengers to obey the hijackers so that everyone could get home safely (because, y’know, Jeebus always wins the day in James’ world). “They’re just a bunch of amateur pilots and goons looking for a ransom ... “

Either that or would have sat there stunned, paging through his own well-worn copy of “The Pet Goat.”

Mr. President Cheney is allowed to use salty language because there’s a war on and therefore everything he does is legal.  Unfortunately for your precious black J*sus, the war is just about to end, so nothing he does will be legal.  Tough break.  Oh, and James, you’re my hero!  You’re just like Andy Kaufman!

“He <strike>kept my family safe </strike> allowed thousands of people to die in the US from terrorist attacks and hundreds of thousands more to die in unnecessary wars the last several years.”

There. Fixed that for you.

You know why it never happened again? Besides the reasons mentioned here, there’s the fact that there just aren’t that many people willing to commit a suicide terrorist attack. Really. Think about it, how many times do we hear about someone shooting up a mall killing 200 + people and then either being shot by the cops or killing themselves? It doesn’t happen very often, even though it would be extremely easy to pull off. You just need a high powered rifle (easily acquired if your record is clean), a few rounds of ammo, a crowded space with a lot of people, and a willingness to die. Not many people, despite what we’re told, have the last part down. Yes, even the people who scream and riot in the Middle East—they may talk a good game about being martyred, but when it comes down to it, not many people have the spine (or insanity) to actually go through with it.

Was that high point while Cheney was in an undisclosed location, or when Dear Leader was looking like a deer in the headlights and reading “The Pet Goat”?

Was that high point Cheney leading NORAD war games which distracted from the actual attack, preventing any sort of effective response?  For Cheney, perhaps so.  It certainly did achieve all of his political goals.

He didn’t exactly get the “permanent Republican majority” he was looking for, L33tminion.

Combine 1) Cheney’s pure hatred for the U.S. Constitution and U.S. and international law with 2) the way he got to be Bush’s running mate, 3) the way they “won” the 2000 election, 4) his “unitary executive” bullshit and 5) his “Fourthbranch” theory of his own office and you have as close to a coup d’etat as is ever likely to happen in the U.S.

Besides the reasons mentioned here, there’s the fact that there just aren’t that many people willing to commit a suicide terrorist attack.

Not only that—there are even fewer who are willing to travel 5,000+ miles to commit the attack.  It’s (relatively) easy to cross the border from the West Bank to Israel or to carry out an attack within Iraq.  It’s a very different thing to get a visa and fly across the Atlantic to carry out your attack.  That’s one of the reasons why American embassies overseas have gotten hit pretty often.  If you’re starting from the Middle East, it’s a heck of a lot easier to get to Yemen than it is to get to New York.

The nightmare scenario would be if we started getting home-grown terrorists like the London bombers but if we did, they almost certainly wouldn’t be from the Middle East.  Britain has a long and often unpleasant history with Pakistan, which is why al-Qaeda was able to recruit successfully.  If Islamic terrorists attacked within the US on some kind of ongoing basis, they’d probably be more likely to be Filipino than Arab given our history.

Mnemosyne—

We have plenty of potential homegrown terrorists, but they’re not Muslims. We had a few encounters with the in the 90s.

Also, Europe does a lot of things right, but they do a lousy job of assimilating immigrants.

Besides the reasons mentioned here, there’s the fact that there just aren’t that many people willing to commit a suicide terrorist attack.

Indeed.  But there’s more, now.  Invading a people and occupying them tends to leave a lot of widowers, widows and orphans with nothing really to live for except a desire for revenge.