He calls it the straw that broke the camel's back:
"The recent slaughters in Russia were the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back of excusing or explaining away radical Islamic terror. If the Estonians can break away from post-Soviet oppression and free themselves from Russian authoritarianism without slaughtering schoolchildren and blowing up airplanes, then the Chechens can as well -- but only if they wish to create democracy rather than an Islamic fascist state."
Friday, September 10, 2004
CYA
As the most intelligent person I know pointed out regarding the 60 Minutes Forgery Scandal, the documents must surely be forged -- since no one who really wanted to cover his backside would put the term "CYA" on a memo designed for that purpose. As any bureaucrat knows, the only way one can properly cover one's backside is by not announcing that is the purpose of the document...
Here's some backup from a posting in the comments section of Roger L. Simon's blog:
Posted by: Terrye at September 10, 2004 07:28 PM
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rick B
No officer would ever use it on a memo. It would be dispositive proof of failure to perform or at minimum to report undue influence. Wouldn't look too hot in a court martial. "I knew it was wrong but I wrote this memo - see."
Thank you!
The "CYA" jumped out at me for exactly that reason.
I have to say this part of it is as shocking to me as anything, since presumably the staff members dealing with these memos are writers, at least some of them.
Seriously: I probably would only have noticed the problems with the type subliminally, but the "CYA" just smacked me between the eyes.
The entire point of a CYA memo is to CYA.
==============================================
Here's some backup from a posting in the comments section of Roger L. Simon's blog:
Posted by: Terrye at September 10, 2004 07:28 PM
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rick B
No officer would ever use it on a memo. It would be dispositive proof of failure to perform or at minimum to report undue influence. Wouldn't look too hot in a court martial. "I knew it was wrong but I wrote this memo - see."
Thank you!
The "CYA" jumped out at me for exactly that reason.
I have to say this part of it is as shocking to me as anything, since presumably the staff members dealing with these memos are writers, at least some of them.
Seriously: I probably would only have noticed the problems with the type subliminally, but the "CYA" just smacked me between the eyes.
The entire point of a CYA memo is to CYA.
==============================================
Mark Helprin on America's Mistakes in Iraq
From the Wall Street Journal: "
"We have followed a confusion of war aims that seem to report after the fact what we have done rather than to direct what we do. We could, by threatening the existence of Middle Eastern regimes, which live to hold power, enforce our insistence that the Arab world eradicate the terrorists within its midst. Instead, we have embarked upon the messianic transformation of an entire region, indeed an entire civilization, in response to our inability to pacify even a single one of its countries. As long as our war aims stray from the disciplined, justifiable, and attainable objective of self-defense, we will be courting failure.
"Our strategy has been deeply inadequate especially in light of the fact that we have refused to build up our forces even as our aims have expanded to the point of absurdity. We might have based in northern Saudi Arabia within easy range of the key regimes that succor terrorism, free to coerce their cooperation by putting their survival in question. Our remounted infantry would have been refreshed, reinforced, properly supported, unaffected by insurgency, and ready to strike. The paradigm would have shifted from conquer, occupy, fail, and withdraw--to strike, return, and re-energize. At the same time, we would not have solicited challenges, as we do now, from anyone who sees that although we may be occupying Iraq, Iraq is also occupying us."
"We have followed a confusion of war aims that seem to report after the fact what we have done rather than to direct what we do. We could, by threatening the existence of Middle Eastern regimes, which live to hold power, enforce our insistence that the Arab world eradicate the terrorists within its midst. Instead, we have embarked upon the messianic transformation of an entire region, indeed an entire civilization, in response to our inability to pacify even a single one of its countries. As long as our war aims stray from the disciplined, justifiable, and attainable objective of self-defense, we will be courting failure.
"Our strategy has been deeply inadequate especially in light of the fact that we have refused to build up our forces even as our aims have expanded to the point of absurdity. We might have based in northern Saudi Arabia within easy range of the key regimes that succor terrorism, free to coerce their cooperation by putting their survival in question. Our remounted infantry would have been refreshed, reinforced, properly supported, unaffected by insurgency, and ready to strike. The paradigm would have shifted from conquer, occupy, fail, and withdraw--to strike, return, and re-energize. At the same time, we would not have solicited challenges, as we do now, from anyone who sees that although we may be occupying Iraq, Iraq is also occupying us."
"60 Minutes is Toast"
Via Matt Drudge, here's the source for reporting on the 60 Minutes Forgery ScandalPower Line: The sixty-first minute.
Lileks on the 60 Minutes Forgery Scandal
Thanks to a link from Instapundit, from The Bleat:
"I can't add a thing to the forgery controversy, even in my capacity as a lily-gilder. The efforts of the Powerline guys and Charles Johnson speak for themselves, and you ought to read them before you make up your mind. Is there anyone out there who doesn't know what I mean? Possible. It's the old non-contiguous information stream issue again. I mentioned the story to someone today--a friend who has his ideas about politics, of course, but doesn't follow the braided strands of intrigue that thread through the blogosphere. He's an independent. Ventura voter. He'd heard about the latest round of National Guard stories, and he couldn't care less. I told him about the forgery rumors; he was amused. Did it change his opinion of CBS? Not really, because he didn't care for them one way or the other. Dan Rather's news was the Daily Show without the laughs."
"I can't add a thing to the forgery controversy, even in my capacity as a lily-gilder. The efforts of the Powerline guys and Charles Johnson speak for themselves, and you ought to read them before you make up your mind. Is there anyone out there who doesn't know what I mean? Possible. It's the old non-contiguous information stream issue again. I mentioned the story to someone today--a friend who has his ideas about politics, of course, but doesn't follow the braided strands of intrigue that thread through the blogosphere. He's an independent. Ventura voter. He'd heard about the latest round of National Guard stories, and he couldn't care less. I told him about the forgery rumors; he was amused. Did it change his opinion of CBS? Not really, because he didn't care for them one way or the other. Dan Rather's news was the Daily Show without the laughs."
Tim Blair on the Jakarta Bombing
Tim Blair has some updates from Australia on the bombing in Indonesia that targeted the Australian embassy.
Thursday, September 09, 2004
Ed Koch: "Russia is America's Ally Against Terrorism"
From Newsmax:
"The Times editorial denounces the Russians for responding to Chechen efforts to secede, 'mainly with force and intransigence.' In the days of the Civil War and the South's efforts to secede from the Union, did The Times propose to President Lincoln that he 'reach for compromise' and let the South go? Lincoln's refusal to allow the secession, despite the knowledge that it would result in a tragic civil war, was nevertheless the right thing to do. Will Putin follow in Lincoln's footsteps? I hope so...The tragic events in Russia should be another wake-up call to the civilized world. As we grieve with the Russian people, we should remember that we are allies in a common war against international terrorism."
"The Times editorial denounces the Russians for responding to Chechen efforts to secede, 'mainly with force and intransigence.' In the days of the Civil War and the South's efforts to secede from the Union, did The Times propose to President Lincoln that he 'reach for compromise' and let the South go? Lincoln's refusal to allow the secession, despite the knowledge that it would result in a tragic civil war, was nevertheless the right thing to do. Will Putin follow in Lincoln's footsteps? I hope so...The tragic events in Russia should be another wake-up call to the civilized world. As we grieve with the Russian people, we should remember that we are allies in a common war against international terrorism."
A "New Russian" Love Story
From MosNews:
"A 23-year-old former Miss Moscow contestant has avoided a prison sentence for ordering a contract hit by marrying her intended victim, Ananova web-site reports. After a bust up with boyfriend Igor Lantsov, a wealthy Moscow businessman, Anastasia Nasinovskaya contacted an old friend and offered $15,000, of Lantsov’s money, to make their separation permanent. The relationship reached breaking point in December of last year when Lantsov demanded Nasinovskaya return a brand new BMW.
“I spent a half a million dollars on her in the six months we lived together,” Lantsov told a police investigator, Izvestia reported. “It’s pure impudence: ordering a hit on me with my own money!”
"She offered Ivan Sentyurin $10,000 up front, with an extra $5,000 after he produced evidence of the contract killing. Sentyurin, however, went straight to the police who set up a ‘sting’ when the would-be hitman went to collect his second payment. In an apparent change of heart by Lantsov, however, the businessman hired a top lawyer to defend his ex and even proposed.
“Apparently his feelings were stronger than the insult of having a contract put on his life,” the police spokesman said. As a result of their wedding the court gave Nasinovskaya a five-year suspended sentence at the end of August, the Moskovsky Komsomolets tabloid wrote."
"A 23-year-old former Miss Moscow contestant has avoided a prison sentence for ordering a contract hit by marrying her intended victim, Ananova web-site reports. After a bust up with boyfriend Igor Lantsov, a wealthy Moscow businessman, Anastasia Nasinovskaya contacted an old friend and offered $15,000, of Lantsov’s money, to make their separation permanent. The relationship reached breaking point in December of last year when Lantsov demanded Nasinovskaya return a brand new BMW.
“I spent a half a million dollars on her in the six months we lived together,” Lantsov told a police investigator, Izvestia reported. “It’s pure impudence: ordering a hit on me with my own money!”
"She offered Ivan Sentyurin $10,000 up front, with an extra $5,000 after he produced evidence of the contract killing. Sentyurin, however, went straight to the police who set up a ‘sting’ when the would-be hitman went to collect his second payment. In an apparent change of heart by Lantsov, however, the businessman hired a top lawyer to defend his ex and even proposed.
“Apparently his feelings were stronger than the insult of having a contract put on his life,” the police spokesman said. As a result of their wedding the court gave Nasinovskaya a five-year suspended sentence at the end of August, the Moskovsky Komsomolets tabloid wrote."
Russian Foreign Minister Blasts US, UK
For giving aid and shelter to Chechen separatists, according to MosNews:
"Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, said on Thursday that the United States and the UK were employing double standards in sheltering Chechen separatists. Speaking to the Vremya Novostei (Time of News) newspaper, he said that rendering asylum to 'persons involved in terrorism, and Russia has documentary witnesses of it, not only rouses our regret but really undermines the unity of the anti-terrorist coalition.' The minister expressed discontent with the facts that Chechen separatist spokesman Akhmed Zakayev lives in London, and their foreign envoy Ilyas Akhmadov has received asylum in the United States. Lavrov called for the executive authorities in those countries to 'take measures not to let those people propagandize terrorism.' In this connection, he recalled that Zakayev had blamed the Russian authorities for the school siege in Beslan."
"Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, said on Thursday that the United States and the UK were employing double standards in sheltering Chechen separatists. Speaking to the Vremya Novostei (Time of News) newspaper, he said that rendering asylum to 'persons involved in terrorism, and Russia has documentary witnesses of it, not only rouses our regret but really undermines the unity of the anti-terrorist coalition.' The minister expressed discontent with the facts that Chechen separatist spokesman Akhmed Zakayev lives in London, and their foreign envoy Ilyas Akhmadov has received asylum in the United States. Lavrov called for the executive authorities in those countries to 'take measures not to let those people propagandize terrorism.' In this connection, he recalled that Zakayev had blamed the Russian authorities for the school siege in Beslan."
What Putin Wants
BBC correspondent Paul Reynolds explains the Russian leader's concerns in Chechnya:
"His insistence that there can be no surrender to demands for independence for Chechnya is based on a number of factors which include:
* a fear of further chaos on Russia's borders in the region
* a feeling that Russia must not make any further territorial concessions anywhere
* a belief that the Chechens were offered and threw away the chance of responsible independence before.
"Mr Putin has also added into this complex mix the spectre of international (by which he means Islamic) terrorism and an accusation that unnamed foreign countries want to break bits off Russia. It must also not be forgotten that he has staked his own reputation on his policy and that therefore he is reluctant to change it."
"His insistence that there can be no surrender to demands for independence for Chechnya is based on a number of factors which include:
* a fear of further chaos on Russia's borders in the region
* a feeling that Russia must not make any further territorial concessions anywhere
* a belief that the Chechens were offered and threw away the chance of responsible independence before.
"Mr Putin has also added into this complex mix the spectre of international (by which he means Islamic) terrorism and an accusation that unnamed foreign countries want to break bits off Russia. It must also not be forgotten that he has staked his own reputation on his policy and that therefore he is reluctant to change it."
"Now that we are the target ..."
From The Sydney Morning Herald:
"The bombing outside the Australian embassy in Jakarta delivered an unequivocal message. Australia is, for the first time, the clear and specific target of Indonesian-based terrorists. The Bali bombings of 2002, which killed 88 Australians, and the later attack on the Marriott Hotel in Jakarta were directed at 'Western interests' in general. However, the car bomb which exploded outside the gate of the heavily fortified embassy struck at the very symbol of Australia's interests and policies. Suspicion has immediately fallen on the regional extremist network, Jemaah Islamiah (JI), despite the huge security operation which netted more than 200 senior JI operatives after the Bali bombings. The attack suggests the Indonesia-based JI, or a similar splinter group, is still active and dangerous, creating real cause for alarm over the security of Australia's large expatriate community."
Last year, we visited some Australian diplomats in New Delhi, and every time our car stopped at the front gate of the residential compound, a guard would look under the vehicle with a mirror on a stick. Each time, it was a reminder of the Bali bombing tragedy, evidence that Americans are not the only terrorist targets...
"The bombing outside the Australian embassy in Jakarta delivered an unequivocal message. Australia is, for the first time, the clear and specific target of Indonesian-based terrorists. The Bali bombings of 2002, which killed 88 Australians, and the later attack on the Marriott Hotel in Jakarta were directed at 'Western interests' in general. However, the car bomb which exploded outside the gate of the heavily fortified embassy struck at the very symbol of Australia's interests and policies. Suspicion has immediately fallen on the regional extremist network, Jemaah Islamiah (JI), despite the huge security operation which netted more than 200 senior JI operatives after the Bali bombings. The attack suggests the Indonesia-based JI, or a similar splinter group, is still active and dangerous, creating real cause for alarm over the security of Australia's large expatriate community."
Last year, we visited some Australian diplomats in New Delhi, and every time our car stopped at the front gate of the residential compound, a guard would look under the vehicle with a mirror on a stick. Each time, it was a reminder of the Bali bombing tragedy, evidence that Americans are not the only terrorist targets...
Wednesday, September 08, 2004
Toby Gati on Vladimir Putin
Toby Gati, a former Clinton administration aide, was among those who met with the Russian president after the Beslan massacre. Gwen Ifill interviewed her on The NewsHour:
"GWEN IFILL: But not mistakes, to be clear, about the handling of the situation at the school in particular, and the way that Russian forces acted or didn't act?
TOBY GATI: No, he went out of his way to praise Russian forces and say they put their lives on the line to save the children. And you can see in the photographs that was actually true at times. He's very convinced that his policy on Chechnya is the right one, a Chechenization handing over security eventually that you can't negotiate with these people.
I think it's interesting, if he could listen to this broadcast he would be profoundly upset to hear people talking about rebels and hostage-takers.
GWEN IFILL: What's wrong with that?
TOBY GATI: The word they use is 'terrorist.' They don't regard these as people who have any cause other than -- it's not Chechen independence. He said, 'We tried to do that. I did everything I could.' And the years between the first and second Chechen war were chaotic. And he would not acknowledge that he should continue with negotiations with terrorists."
"GWEN IFILL: But not mistakes, to be clear, about the handling of the situation at the school in particular, and the way that Russian forces acted or didn't act?
TOBY GATI: No, he went out of his way to praise Russian forces and say they put their lives on the line to save the children. And you can see in the photographs that was actually true at times. He's very convinced that his policy on Chechnya is the right one, a Chechenization handing over security eventually that you can't negotiate with these people.
I think it's interesting, if he could listen to this broadcast he would be profoundly upset to hear people talking about rebels and hostage-takers.
GWEN IFILL: What's wrong with that?
TOBY GATI: The word they use is 'terrorist.' They don't regard these as people who have any cause other than -- it's not Chechen independence. He said, 'We tried to do that. I did everything I could.' And the years between the first and second Chechen war were chaotic. And he would not acknowledge that he should continue with negotiations with terrorists."
Big Trouble for John Kerry
Says the BBC:
"A year ago, John Kerry was dreaming of a presidential debate in which George Bush wilted under Mr Kerry's encyclopaedic knowledge of the world. But the Yale frat boys have given him a severe awakening. Like Al Gore, John Kerry appears to have badly underestimated George Bush's raw talent for the campaign fight. John Kerry was lulled into making Vietnam the centrepiece of his character, only to find himself running for cover under withering sniper fire from the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. Then along came the Republican Party, and with all the grace of an abattoir, sliced and diced his character at their Convention and spat him out 10 points behind in the polls."
"A year ago, John Kerry was dreaming of a presidential debate in which George Bush wilted under Mr Kerry's encyclopaedic knowledge of the world. But the Yale frat boys have given him a severe awakening. Like Al Gore, John Kerry appears to have badly underestimated George Bush's raw talent for the campaign fight. John Kerry was lulled into making Vietnam the centrepiece of his character, only to find himself running for cover under withering sniper fire from the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. Then along came the Republican Party, and with all the grace of an abattoir, sliced and diced his character at their Convention and spat him out 10 points behind in the polls."
Leon Aron on Russia's Plans
In March testimony to the Committee on International Relations, U.S. House of Representatives:
"In developing Russia’s strategic posture toward the United States, President Putin is likely to mediate between the national consensus and the “restorationists” agenda. In end, the resultant policies are likely to be closer to the former rather than the latter. The anti-American impulse is likely to be constrained both by the over-arching mutual strategic agenda and by the cost of neo-globalism and massive re-armament that such an impulse would dictate. While increasing Russian assertiveness on the territory of the former Soviet Union, Russia is not likely to undermine the U.S. strategic interests—provided such interests are clearly demarcated and communicated to Russia in no uncertain terms."
"In developing Russia’s strategic posture toward the United States, President Putin is likely to mediate between the national consensus and the “restorationists” agenda. In end, the resultant policies are likely to be closer to the former rather than the latter. The anti-American impulse is likely to be constrained both by the over-arching mutual strategic agenda and by the cost of neo-globalism and massive re-armament that such an impulse would dictate. While increasing Russian assertiveness on the territory of the former Soviet Union, Russia is not likely to undermine the U.S. strategic interests—provided such interests are clearly demarcated and communicated to Russia in no uncertain terms."
Russia Endorses Pre-emption
According to Mosnews, Russia will now act to pre-empt terrorists, in what sounds like a parallel to the "Bush doctrine."
America's Chechen Lobby
From The Guardian:
"Although the White House issued a condemnation of the Beslan hostage-takers, its official view remains that the Chechen conflict must be solved politically. According to ACPC member Charles Fairbanks of Johns Hopkins University, US pressure will now increase on Moscow to achieve a political, rather than military, solution - in other words to negotiate with terrorists, a policy the US resolutely rejects elsewhere. Allegations are even being made in Russia that the west itself is somehow behind the Chechen rebellion, and that the purpose of such support is to weaken Russia, and to drive her out of the Caucasus. The fact that the Chechens are believed to use as a base the Pankisi gorge in neighbouring Georgia - a country which aspires to join Nato, has an extremely pro-American government, and where the US already has a significant military presence - only encourages such speculation. Putin himself even seemed to lend credence to the idea in his interview with foreign journalists on Monday. Proof of any such western involvement would be difficult to obtain, but is it any wonder Russians are asking themselves such questions when the same people in Washington who demand the deployment of overwhelming military force against the US's so-called terrorist enemies also insist that Russia capitulate to hers?"
"Although the White House issued a condemnation of the Beslan hostage-takers, its official view remains that the Chechen conflict must be solved politically. According to ACPC member Charles Fairbanks of Johns Hopkins University, US pressure will now increase on Moscow to achieve a political, rather than military, solution - in other words to negotiate with terrorists, a policy the US resolutely rejects elsewhere. Allegations are even being made in Russia that the west itself is somehow behind the Chechen rebellion, and that the purpose of such support is to weaken Russia, and to drive her out of the Caucasus. The fact that the Chechens are believed to use as a base the Pankisi gorge in neighbouring Georgia - a country which aspires to join Nato, has an extremely pro-American government, and where the US already has a significant military presence - only encourages such speculation. Putin himself even seemed to lend credence to the idea in his interview with foreign journalists on Monday. Proof of any such western involvement would be difficult to obtain, but is it any wonder Russians are asking themselves such questions when the same people in Washington who demand the deployment of overwhelming military force against the US's so-called terrorist enemies also insist that Russia capitulate to hers?"
The Disappearing International Student
USA Today reports fewer international students are coming to study in America:
"U.S. graduate schools this year saw a 28% decline in applications from international students and an 18% drop in admissions, a finding that some experts say threatens higher education's ability to maintain its reputation for offering high-quality programs. The sharp declines, based on responses from 126 institutions, were reported in a study released Tuesday by the Council of Graduate Schools, a Washington-based nonprofit. About 88% of those schools reported a decline in international applications; 12% saw an increase. Several factors contribute to the drops, council president Debra Stewart says. Those include changes to the visa application process after 9/11, a perception that the USA has grown less welcoming of foreigners and increased competition from universities abroad. Secretary of State Colin Powell, speaking in May, acknowledged that 'procedural frustrations' could prevent more foreign students from enrolling in U.S. programs. 'We have to do a better job of attracting them here.'"
I can attest to the "procedural frustrations." Unless they are in a government program, it is almost impossible for students from Uzbekistan, for example, to get a student visa for study in the United States, even if they have the money to pay tuition, and have been accepted by an American school. Curiously, the odds are much better for getting an immigration visa through the green card lottery...
"U.S. graduate schools this year saw a 28% decline in applications from international students and an 18% drop in admissions, a finding that some experts say threatens higher education's ability to maintain its reputation for offering high-quality programs. The sharp declines, based on responses from 126 institutions, were reported in a study released Tuesday by the Council of Graduate Schools, a Washington-based nonprofit. About 88% of those schools reported a decline in international applications; 12% saw an increase. Several factors contribute to the drops, council president Debra Stewart says. Those include changes to the visa application process after 9/11, a perception that the USA has grown less welcoming of foreigners and increased competition from universities abroad. Secretary of State Colin Powell, speaking in May, acknowledged that 'procedural frustrations' could prevent more foreign students from enrolling in U.S. programs. 'We have to do a better job of attracting them here.'"
I can attest to the "procedural frustrations." Unless they are in a government program, it is almost impossible for students from Uzbekistan, for example, to get a student visa for study in the United States, even if they have the money to pay tuition, and have been accepted by an American school. Curiously, the odds are much better for getting an immigration visa through the green card lottery...
Tuesday, September 07, 2004
Mark Steyn on Why Bush Will Win
In The Telegraph:
"The Kerry campaign is a bore that's degenerating into a laughing stock. 'Bush-despising' is no doubt very comforting to McCrum's beleaguered literati but in the end it's little more than snobbery - fine for cocktail condescension but utterly inadequate for an election campaign. You can't beat something with nothing, and Kerry is about as spectacular a nothing as you could devise - a thin-skinned whiny vanity candidate who persists in deluding himself that Bush's advantage is all down to 'smears' and 'lies' and 'mean' 'attacks'. It's not. Bush's something is very simple: his view of the war on terror resonates with a majority of the American people; when he talks about 9/11 and the aftermath, they recognise themselves in his words; they trust his strategy on this issue. For an inarticulate man, he communicates a lot more effectively than Senator Nuancy Boy.
"Wallace Shawn, by contrast, is a writer, a man who makes his living by words and yet devalues his own currency. Is the Bush-Cheney tyranny truly a 'scary' time for him? Is he really 'scared'? Of course not. He's having a convivial drink with a fawning Brit interviewer; what could be more agreeable? 'Scary' is - to pluck at random - being held hostage in a school gym and the kid next to you is parched and asks for water and the terrorist stabs him in the belly in front of your eyes. 'Scary' cannot encompass both that situation and Wallace Shawn's vague distaste for Bush without losing all meaning."
"The Kerry campaign is a bore that's degenerating into a laughing stock. 'Bush-despising' is no doubt very comforting to McCrum's beleaguered literati but in the end it's little more than snobbery - fine for cocktail condescension but utterly inadequate for an election campaign. You can't beat something with nothing, and Kerry is about as spectacular a nothing as you could devise - a thin-skinned whiny vanity candidate who persists in deluding himself that Bush's advantage is all down to 'smears' and 'lies' and 'mean' 'attacks'. It's not. Bush's something is very simple: his view of the war on terror resonates with a majority of the American people; when he talks about 9/11 and the aftermath, they recognise themselves in his words; they trust his strategy on this issue. For an inarticulate man, he communicates a lot more effectively than Senator Nuancy Boy.
"Wallace Shawn, by contrast, is a writer, a man who makes his living by words and yet devalues his own currency. Is the Bush-Cheney tyranny truly a 'scary' time for him? Is he really 'scared'? Of course not. He's having a convivial drink with a fawning Brit interviewer; what could be more agreeable? 'Scary' is - to pluck at random - being held hostage in a school gym and the kid next to you is parched and asks for water and the terrorist stabs him in the belly in front of your eyes. 'Scary' cannot encompass both that situation and Wallace Shawn's vague distaste for Bush without losing all meaning."
Your Tax Dollars At Work
Laura Rozen tipped us off to this story in The Washington Times on how the CIA Counter Terrorism Center has been giving millions of dollars to Democrats:
"The CIA's Counterterrorist Center has spent more than $15 million in the past three years funding studies, reports and conferences produced by former Democratic administration officials and other critics of the Bush administration. The latest effort was a $300,000 grant by the CIA to the Atlantic Council for a study co-authored by Richard A. Clarke, the former counterterrorism official who wrote a best seller accusing the Bush administration of failing in the war on terrorism by invading Iraq."
"The CIA's Counterterrorist Center has spent more than $15 million in the past three years funding studies, reports and conferences produced by former Democratic administration officials and other critics of the Bush administration. The latest effort was a $300,000 grant by the CIA to the Atlantic Council for a study co-authored by Richard A. Clarke, the former counterterrorism official who wrote a best seller accusing the Bush administration of failing in the war on terrorism by invading Iraq."
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