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Politics : Moderate Forum -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Dale Baker who wrote (11240)	5/28/2004 11:35:15 AM
From: Dale Baker	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 20773

Good thing fighting terrorism is Bush's top priority; imagine what would happen if they didn't take it seriously: Threat Warning Called a Surprise to Agency Times Headlines Cashiered Over Cache in Baghdad WASHINGTON — The Homeland Security Department was surprised by the announcement by Atty. Gen. John Ashcroft and FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III that a terrorist attack was increasingly likely in coming months, officials said Thursday. The department, created a year after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, is charged with issuing terrorism warnings to the public, and tension arose when Ashcroft and Mueller effectively took over that role at a news conference Wednesday when they said Al Qaeda is preparing a powerful attack. Officials said the Homeland Security Department knew in advance about the news conference but expected it to focus on seven suspects with ties to Al Qaeda who were wanted for arrest or questioning. Department officials said they were caught off guard when Ashcroft went further and warned that Al Qaeda "is ready to attack the United States." The news conference, which excluded Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge, raised concerns in Washington that his department was not coordinating the domestic fight against terrorism, which was confusing the message for the public and for local authorities. Earlier on Wednesday, Ridge spoke on morning television shows and appeared to downplay the threat that Ashcroft would later trumpet, officials said. He told ABC's "Good Morning America" that the threats are "not the most disturbing that I have personally seen during the past couple of years." Lawmakers who oversee the Homeland Security Department said the events Wednesday appeared to undermine the effort to unify the federal government's response to terrorism threats. "The reason that Congress created the Department of Homeland Security is that we need to merge the various parts of government responsible for pieces of the war on terrorism into one coordinated effort," said Rep. Christopher Cox (R-Newport Beach), chairman of the Homeland Security Committee. Cox said it was "regrettable" that Ridge did not appear with Ashcroft and Mueller "because their separate public appearances conveyed the impression that the broad and close interagency consultation we expect … may not have taken place in this case." He noted that the 2002 law creating the department puts the secretary in charge of issuing "public advisories relating to threats to homeland security." Rep. Jim Turner of Texas, the committee's senior Democrat, suggested the Homeland Security Department may not have known that the news conference would delve into threat conditions.

To: Dale Baker who wrote (11240)	5/30/2004 12:09:50 AM
From: cosmicforce	Respond to of 20773

No, I think Men of Words, Men of Action, True Believers and Fanatics are elements of a reasonable model of humanity. It's best not to bemoan the state of the Human Condition, though, but deal with it head on. Watching politics is a lot like body-surfing. There are sets and there are breakers. Sometimes the breakers are what you want and sometimes they pound the shore. The best way to deal with shore breakers is hang out beyond the surf zone and wait for the set to end. Sometimes, it just isn't your turn to have a chance at the ride. But when things go your way, it's great and one should make hay when the sun shines. The lesson, I guess, is that 8 years of cynical hate mongers can feel like a prison sentence. One day the pendulum will swing. The return of the draft will be the end of the Republicans and if they allow Iraq to persist and stay there for 10 years, then a draft is a necessity. It takes 20 miles to turn a supertanker. It takes a lot longer to steer a country. The good news, is that as bad as the current administration is, they will ultimately be brought down by their own arrogance and hubris, and they are limited by how efficiently they can turn the "ship of state". From what I see, Boozeboy Bush and Rummy seem like they were trained on the Exxon Valdez. Those with a social conscience should move out of the surf zone and wait out the set.