INVITING TERROR TO SUPPER --Timid Spanish Voters Join The Euro-Appeasers

American Enterprise Magazine ^ | MARNI SOUPCOFF

[Apolitical]

It's now official. Spain has elected its Socialist party to power, throwing out the ruling center-right Popular Party (PP), which had stood beside the U.S. in the war in Iraq.

So, what happened? The PP was leading in the polls and widely expected to win Sunday's general election. But then a series of explosions shook Madrid's commuter trains, killing hundreds, and al-Qaeda emerged as the leading suspect. It looked as though they had arranged the attack to seek vengeance for Spain's support of the Iraq war. Next thing you know, the Spaniards had headed to the ballot box and vaulted the Socialists to power.

This is a sad reaction from a people who at first appeared to be so strong and defiant in the face of brutal terrorist attacks.

After all, rather than cowering in their homes, millions of Spaniards took to the streets to protest the bombings. Spain's King Juan Carlos spoke eloquently to his people about remaining united and strong in the face of the deadly explosions. And the government vowed firmly to find and bring those responsible to justice. The Spaniards seemed unwilling to be cowed by the terrorists' bloody scare tactics.

And then they voted.

By electing the Socialists, the Spanish sent a clear message to Osama bin Laden and his associates: if you hit us where it hurts, we'll do what you say........

[Apolitical]

A perfect analysis of the politics of appeasement -- the very recipe for failure advocated by John F. Kerry.

[Jewels1091]

Right on!!! They should hang their heads in shame. I want to know when the next bomb comes to them who are they going to blame then?

[maestro]

666

[TexasRepublic]

I hope Spanish women like wearing burkas. The reconquest of Spain for Islam has begun!

[xJones]

Which is why Kerry must be defeated in November, and why we must all vote for Bush. To vote otherwise, is for a vote for terrorism. The Spanish voters caved in, and they can live with their Muslims. But we can't allow terrorists to win.

[TheSpottedOwl]

For this contribution, the Spanish voters should be ashamed. They have met terror, looked it bravely in the eye, then invited it to stay to supper and asked what they could do to make it more comfortable. Such a choice is demeaning to the Spaniards who died in the bombings, painting their lives as nothing more than the cheap price a terrorist needs to pay to achieve his ends. And such a choice raises the bar on terrorist acts the world over.

When they cast their ballots yesterday, the Spanish made a vote for which we will all, eventually, pay the price.

Very true. The best way to avenge the innocent lives lost is not to bow down to the murderers, but hunt them down and take revenge.

[Gringo1]

That would be the reconquest.

[Lexington Green]

Might there be a Socialist/al Qaeda connection? ... bombings benefit the socialists

[Van Jenerette]

Osama bin Laden's revenge for the loss of Al-Andalus(Islamic Spain)?

[yonif]

I don't think it was all about this terror. The ruling party would have lost anyway, I think 80% of Spaniards were against the war in Iraq.

[floriduh voter]

Whether one cares for Michael Savage or not, I'm sure he'll be all over this tonight on the radio. What he said the other day is true but that was pre-election.

I watched the footage from Spain and the guys were sissified. They've made a grave error and when they get in trouble, the UN won't help Spain and they'll come crying to US.

[livius]

No, all of the surveys had the PP projected to win easily on Sunday. The Iraq issue had died down, the economy was hot, and ETA terrorism was way down.

But the Socialists won not only because of the shock and fear, but because they were so quick to whip it up and use it to their own advantage. They also they started to stir up social disturbances that were quite intimidating. Seeing armored vehicles pulled up in front of the PP offices on Sat. night to protect them from the mobs (of students, "peace activists" and other leftists) was very unnerving to Spaniards, I think.

I don't think the Socialists knew about the attack in advance, but they sure knew how to use it when it happened. We should be really prepared here in the US for a similar play.

[yonif]

No, all of the surveys had the PP projected to win easily on Sunday. The Iraq issue had died down, the economy was hot, and ETA terrorism was way down.

I am not doubting what you say, however, can you provide me a source showing these polls?

[yonif]

And remember ETA terrorism was around during Christmas, when they intercepted an ETA attempt to bomb the train station.

[BroncosFan]

Ping. Worth checking out. Wonder if the effect of a late October attack here would be the same? Or would people rally behind Bush?

[Modernman]

How quickly people forget the lessons of appeasement. I think there's a chance we'll start seeing terror attacks in England, Poland, Japan and South Korea now. This has been a lesson to the terrorists- you can peel off American allies with bombs.

Of course, if they try something like this in "hard-case" allies like Singapore, Australia etc., they might get a very different response from the general public in those nations. The Spanish may believe they have the luxury of trying to remain neutral in the WOT. Singaporeans do not.

[Betaille]

"Which is why Kerry must be defeated in November, and why we must all vote for Bush. To vote otherwise, is for a vote for terrorism."
If there are more attacks before the election... and Kerry wins. I have a feeling the Military won't let that happen. ::wink wink::

[xJones]

If there are more attacks before the election... and Kerry wins. I have a feeling the Military won't let that happen. ::wink wink::

A wink may be as good as a nod (Monty Python), but you'll have to explain your comment better.

[livius]

I'll see if I can find some polls from the Spanish press (prior to Thursday, of course).

Yes, ETA did appear to be busy - the police caught them trying to bring 1,000 pounds of explosives to Madrid just last weekend. I still think we'll find that ETA was involved, along with AQ. But remember, the left secretly loves ETA, because it is essentially a Marxist group, so I'm not sure how much we'll hear about it.

[Betaille]

"but you'll have to explain your comment better."
Explanation: I don't think our military would tolerate a left-wing terrorist hugger during war-time. If Kerry wins his days in office will be quite numbered.