Kucinich calls terror alert a government scare tactic

[AnAmerican]

"The Bush administration is using elevated terror alerts for political gain while confusing Americans and accomplishing little, Democratic presidential hopeful Dennis Kucinich said.

The Ohio congressman, campaigning at a library services company in central New Hampshire on Friday, said if administration officials have information about terror threats, they should act on it, instead of advertising the threat to scare Americans.

"Why didn't they just put extra security out?" he asked. "They are building up fear to become more powerful politically."

<snip>

"My whole campaign is to challenge this fear, this fear about the Patriot Act, the fear about Iraq," he said. "The fear of Iraq was not founded. They didn't attack us. They didn't have weapons of mass destruction."




More at http://www.bayarea.com/mld/mercurynews/news/politics/7581356.htm

[twilight]

1. You GO DK, GO!!!

Dennis Kucinich is not letting FEAR run his campaign!

With you until the end!!! Go Dennis Kucinich for President 2004!!!!!!



:dem: :kick:

[barbaraann]

2. What a man!

He puts a lot of other Dems to shame.

[polpilot]

14. Go Dennis. This country has gone to hell...Red...Orange...Purple........

.

[Terwilliger]

3. YES!!!

This is the guy who needs to be running against Bush!!!

[Torrey Pines]

4. There is a lot of suspicion out there

that this is exactly what they're doing.

[Andy_Stephenson]

5. It is exactly what they are doing....

Terror alert...I laugh at the idiocy of these people in power. If it happens...they are the ones to blame now.

[LWolf]

13. It's like waving a red flag,

isn't it? As blatant an invitation to an "incident" as I can think of. The Bush administration can only benefit from another terrorist attack.

[adadem]

7. My Republican friend

(a moderate) said she suspects something "fishy" about the terror alerts over the holidays. Almost fell off my chair.

[Nadienne]

32. lol

There are plenty of republicans who are dissatisfied with Bush. They ought to be considering how to get their party back.

[twilight]

8. hi!!

:hi:

Its called controlling the masses with FEAR. It has worked very well historically. Yes, indeed!

DK is the only candidate that is willing to come out and say it. This is who we need! :D The truth shall set you free!!!




:dem: :kick:

[adadem]

6. Way to go Dennis

[PATRICK]

9. Absolutely right

but impossible to make everyone see the picture. Actually the various manipulations are broader than the general accusation. The point is that all these things are made to work for Bushco. That is their priority number one, to the exclusion of all else. In some of their thinking a terror hit would be preferable, preferably away from the angry voters, preferably a Blue state our defenses failing.

The French plane scenario looks like the same old diversion from the fact nothing happened. Tons of unsubstanitated conjecture and outrage against the French. Sounds like an old song now.

Meanwhile this scare tactic does little to make us safer, which is not the number one Bush priorirty.

Lately I am a little more aware of the atomic "thing" that the Bush's have done nothing but exacerbate. On the the radio their is a private group trying to convert Russian bombs into reactors(USEC?). With evil irony, at the same time, Russia announces a new generation of bombs. Bush I to Nixon's consternation did nothing about Russia's dormant stockpile.

With enforced fatalism and thanks to selective isolationism by the distratcing anti-Clinton GOP, all these dangers have been increased, left to rot and proliferate in dark places. Our own agents are like that private group trying to put fingers in the untended dam.

This is the big LIHOP. By studiously doing nothing a WMD world(with the "inevitable" tragedies) will propel the US into using its unthinkable weapon muscle with "justification", our largest and least electorally controversial(look Ma, no draft!) tool of Empire.
If you have been watching they have been doing everything to make the
nuke into the tool of choice as one of their easy ways to succeed.

[Mairead]

10. Imagine what an enormous shake-up this man would deliver!

Smirk would never dare debate him. Which brings up my main fear: that 'terrorists' would shoot his plane out of the sky. If we can get him the nom, I think we should all urge him NOT to fly, but to travel by ground instead. Possibly an old-fashioned whistle-stop train trip. Or either a luxury bus. But not fly under any circumstances.

[LWolf]

18. I predict

that Dennis will not concede anything to fear. He will continue on his path, by land and air, regardless.

That said, I like the whistle-stop idea. If my profession were different, I'd take time off to join the January Peace Train trip to Iowa. I really, really wanted to take this trip. Unfortunately, that nagging conscience of mine won't allow me to abandon my students to a sub for a week or more to do so.

[Eurobabe]

11. at least DK has cajones

to say this. my mind of course leaped ahead to: ok, what are they trying to distract us from now? was this a cover for the MAD COW story? i hate living like this.

with all the money we waste paying overtime for the orange alert, wouldn't this money be better spent figuring out how to live more peacably in this world, rather than continually antagonizing others?

GO DENNIS!

[LWolf]

12. You know something?

I've never yet, in 43 years and 9 months of life, found a politician I respected. I appreciated some of what some of them said or did, but I never really believed in their sincerity or in their integrity. I never trusted their motives. When I started looking at the candidates almost a year ago, Dennis impressed me. The more I learned, the more I felt he was the right choice. So I started paying attention to him; to what he was doing and saying every day. And he repeatedly reinforces that conviction; he is the right choice. I believe in what this man is doing and saying. For the very first time.

[Nadienne]

35. I myself

never much cared for politics. I saw the first debate and thought, I'll leave it to the regulars to decide, and support the winner. Tough call. But then I realized that if I want things in this country to improve for everyone, and if I want to have my values and priorities represented, now is the time. And Kucinich is the one.

[Mairead]

15. Give him money, folks! Even if you favor someone else.

He's doing this for all of us. So give him money.

How many politicians have ever put it right on the line like this? Over and over again, fearlessly.

He's as tough as nails. And he's 100% on our side, nobody else's. If we want our political officeholders to be fearless and on our side, then we have to show them it pays off for them.

Give money to his campaign. Encourage the truth.

[Spock_is_Skeptical]

16. Once again, Dennis is right.

:)

[Kat 333]

23. Once Again ...

HE comes out and says (Or Does) what others are thinking but stop short of saying (or doing).

No need to make claims that aren't true, spin past comments to try to redefine a position. Best Yet - You can stand him up at the gates of hell and he won't back down.

GOOOOOOooooooooooooooooooo DENNIS !!!

btw - He, interestingly, has the overwhelming support of the many seniors in this community. I've helped coordinate various democratic functions at the Senior Center the past couple of months and have consistently heard the comment "He is the only Real Democrat to choose from". Gotta love the wisdom that comes with all those years of living.

[dpbrown]

17. Of course it was

That obnoxious former governor from Pennsylvania pops out of his gopher hole in time to scare people for Christmas, and then oozes back down into his hole afterward, "grateful" to have been wrong - again.

[redqueen]

19. Forget 'head and shoulders'... he's miles above...

"I think we are going to be the Seabiscuit of the 2004 race. We're moving into position in time for the stretch," he said.

From your lips to God's ears, Kooch.

Put your money where your principles are. Donate to Kucinich.

“Where we put our money represents what we value most in this world. Let us invest ourselves in peace, justice, and freedom.”

[LWolf]

20. I think we are, too.

No one fits the profile of the blue-collar champion like Dennis.

[dpbrown]

21. And Kucinich held NO secret energy meetings, with anyone!

LOL...

...the latest distinguishing hair-splitting - but Dean's secret energy meetings were different from Cheney's secret energy meetings.

Yeah, it'll be so easy to beat George Bush with clear distinctions in tactics, methods, and ideologies like this.

Not.

Dan Brown
Saint Paul, Minnesota

[dpbrown]

22. A kick for public financing!

https://www.kucinich.us/contribute.php

The BFEE is the problem - Kucinich is the answer.

Dan Brown
Saint Paul, Minnesota

[goodhue]

24. "They are building up fear to become more powerful politically."

so true

[Spinoza]

25. I AGREE WITH MOST OF THE COMMENTS. HOWEVER,

I still wonder about the following scenario:

One week after Kucinichi's presidential inauguration he is informed by the (new) CIA Director that:
1) The CIA has picked up a 500% increase in chatter by probable terrorists over the last 3 days.
2) The chatter keeps referring to an imminent operation called "Nova".
3) The CIA has no other information.
4) The CIA, Homeland Security, the NSA and the FBI recommend an immediate code orange alert. It may be nothing. But noone is sure. It may be real.

What does President Kucinichi do?

[Mairead]

26. Hand on my heart, I truly believe that if we put DK in office

there's not going to BE any more terrorism. Because his whole MO is totally different -- it's based on sharing and even-handedness.

People in the rest of the world are watching all this hoo-hah like hawks. They know what the stakes are better than most USAians, sad to say. They know it's DK and AS who are saying with clear voices and no dissembling 'we must deal fairly with everyone beginning *now*'.

[Spinoza]

27. THERE'S NOT GOING TO BE ANY MORE TERRORISM?

"there's not going to BE any more terrorism. Because his whole MO is totally different -- it's based on sharing and even-handedness. "

Somehow I doubt that Al Queda gives much of a shit about "sharing and even-handedness". I guarantee you that a huge majority of the American people won't believe that terrorism will simply stop immediately once Kuchinich is elected President. Certainly, there was plenty of Islamic sponsored terrorism under President Clinton. (Kobe, First attack on TWin Towers, etc.) Don't cop out. You know the scenario I outlined is possible. Even if you sincerely BELIEVE all Islamic terrorist actions against the U.S. will EVENTUALLY decline under President Kuchinich, my scenario is valid and needs to be answered. What does President Kuchinich do?

[Spinoza]

28. CORRECTION: Sorry. I meant USS "Cole" not "Kobe"

[Mairead]

30. The terrorism during Clinton's time was due to the US not playing fair!

What other nations are attacked by terrorists? What about those that aren't? There's a pattern there! It maps very well onto national behavior.

Don't dismiss so easily the power of simple fairness.

[Spinoza]

31. DO YOU REALLY BELIEVE

that Al Queda, an organization willing to use human missiles to slaughter thousands of innocent civilians, including children, including fellow Islamics, will simply stop all activities against the U.S. immediately upon the inauguration of President Kucinich?

As acknowleged by many radical mullahs, the U.S. is targeted more than other countries because the U.S. is the richest and most powerful western nation and is therefore a symbol of the west and of modernity and of a NON-ISLAMIC (infidel) country. That won't change under any forseeable president.

President Kucinich must make a decision one way or the other. What would he do?

[Nadienne]

33. Funny, that we're perceived as the richest nation

I suppose Muslim extremists wouldn't know any better.

[Nadienne]

34. I can add on to this a little

Switzerland. Isn't Switzerland a richer country? Are they victims of terrorism?

[diamondsoul]

36. Begin impementing

a plan he'd like to have overseen by a Department of Peace, without waiting for the Department to be established.

1. Insist on a nationwide law-enforcement communications network specifically geared towards imminent threat intelligence sharing.

2. Review and adapt local emergency response plans to ensure maximum effectiveness in the event of an attack anywhere in the country.

3. Implement stronger security measures on all of our shipping centers and other facilities which are less than adequately protected.

4. Order the CIA and all other intelligence agencies to keep him apprised of new information as it becomes available and respond accordingly with defensive plans.

Now, you can dimiss this as less than what needs to be done if you like, but here's the thing- you won't stop terrorism with these alerts, with pre-emptive strikes or ridiculously extreme powers of invasion of privacy on the citizens of this country. The ONLY way you stop terrorism is to make friends of your enemies. That takes time. In the meanwhile all you can do is do everything possible to be prepared to respond to an attack and hope like hell the planners are exposed before the attack occurs.

I would rather die in a terrorist attack because I'm a free and equal citizen than have the Government free to read my pesonal writings, my library check-out list and perform cavity searches on my body because they don't liike the message of the pin I'm wearing when I try to board a plane. If I have to be invaded, degraded, humiliated and harrassed in order to be safe, I'd rather be in danger or dead.

[Mairead]

37. Yes, actually, I do

Regardless of what anyone claims, the countries that are being attacked from outside are the imperialist ones, and only the imperialist ones. Rich or poor doesn't have much to do with it.

[Forkboy]

29. and once again Dennis is correct

[Zomby Woof]

38. ZombyKick

[goodhue]

39. kick

for courage