A Moveable Feast of Terrorism (Dowd Alert!)

The New York Times ^ | November 11, 2004 | Maureen Dowd

[Hermann the Cherusker]

During the campaign, President Bush and Dick Cheney gave the ominous impression that there was a dire threat that terrorists could incinerate Americans at any time if that powder puff John Kerry got anywhere near the Oval Office.

Mission accomplished. Tell those wolves to scat, and let that eagle soar, baby.

...

The president is putting his own counsel, Alberto Gonzales, who wrote the famous memo defending torture, in charge of our civil liberties. Torture Guy, who blithely threw off 75 years of international law and set the stage for the grotesque abuses at Abu Ghraib and dubious detentions at Guantánamo, seems to have a good grasp of what's just. No doubt we'll soon learn what other protections, besides the Geneva Conventions and the Constitution, Mr. Gonzales finds "quaint'' and "obsolete.''

...

With the F.B.I. investigating Halliburton and the second-term scandal curse looming, Mr. Bush and Mr. Cheney want a dependable ally - and former Enron attorney - at Justice. But since the country is controlled by one party and the press has tended toward the pusillanimous, cowed by the special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald as he tries to throw reporters in jail, the White House may be able to suppress any second-term problems.

...

Even as Karl Rove boasts that "moral values'' swept his boss back into the White House, it never seems to occur to the president that it's immoral to endanger our troops in a war shaped by the political clock, a war with no visible enemy, no coherent plan and no exit timetable.

...

The math is self-defeating. Pictures of forces taking a Falluja mosque will no doubt spur a surge of Islamic terrorist recruits, who won't be fooled by the marines' new camouflage: their Iraqi vanguard.

Just as there is talk here that John Kerry may want to run again, there is also talk that Donald Rumsfeld wants to stay on to continue his transformation of the military. Rummy's stubborn need to show we could do more with less is what kept us from having the strength to secure Iraq at the start, turning our troops into targets for a ghostly foe armed with the explosives and missiles looted by insurgents from unguarded caches.

...

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/11/opinion/11dowd.html

[pgkdan]

is this the left wing hussy from nyc?

Just look closely, if you see horns sprouting through her technicolr hair you'll know she's the one.

I can't belive she has the unmitigated gall to rant and rave about Americans torturing our prisoners...I guess hse missed the story about our guys finding the terrorist slaughterhouses in Fallujah yesterday.

[claptrap]

Heh heh methinks Dowd has a problem only 20% of her readers
identify with what she has to say hence shes upped her shrill factor! Its fun to watch the whiny b*t*h shrink into
columnist(communist) obscurity Heh Heh!

[texan75010]

Is she really an alcohalic?

[blake6900]

Maureen Dowd is a glaring example of what happens to a woman who doesn't get enough (or any) sex. Her problem, however, is that she was probably like this when she was getting enough...which is more than likely the reason why Douglas dumped her.

You can just tell this woman is a log.

[camle]

can you imagine what Al Queda would do to her if she lived in IRaq before the war?

i think that people ought not have to live in a country that they hate, and ought to be free to go and live int he society they admire. let her and her ilk go to pakistan and live in a taliban enclave for a few years.

[najida]

The Brazen Blue State Hussy speaks.

[Hermann the Cherusker]

Oh, that's just meeeeeeeeann!

Mean? You haven't begun to see mean.

Caption Time!

Dear Miss Dowd,

I was deeply saddened to hear that you would be unable to attend Mr. Douglas' wedding because you had no prior engagement.

So that you do not miss out completely, I'm sending you some pictures and a slice of the wedding cake. It was simply scrumptious, and I hate the thought of you never tasting some.

Perhaps we'll have lunch once I'm back from the honeymoon? I promise I will write and let you know EVERYTHING that happens!

I've got to run now dear. I will be sure to give Michael a kiss for you!

Much, much love,
C.

[squarebarb]

Actually, the foundation of how to treat enemy combatants was set during the Civil War, in Missouri. I just happened on it while doing research, in the Official Records Of The War f The Rebellion.

So much guerilla warfare in Missouri, they had to set rules as to how to treat POWs vs. guerillas. And what determined if one was a POW or solider of the opposing force, such as 'must be part of a chain of command' and 'must be wearing a uniform', etc.

[michaelbfree]

thanks, interesting. Yes, no uniforms, no country, dress as civilians, kill and make war on civilians, intermingle with civilians are just a few of the defining characteristics....if we know this squarebarb, why doesn't an elitest "intellectual" who considers herself so much smarter than you and I?

[Mi-kha-el]

That's what she does best - compilation. It's like she keeps chasing her own tail all the time. However, frustration shows.

[PH07718]

YES!