Sunday, April 29, 2007

How Bush lost the war, encouraged terrorists, and weakened the American military

by Len Hart, The Existentialist Cowboy

So much nonsense and outright lies are believed by conservatives about almost everything that liberals and other more thoughtful segments of our society are often overwhelmed. So suspicious we have become that we are tempted to think it a deliberate stratgy.

Indeed, many are awed and intimidated by the sheer magnitude of the big lie. The American right wing has created a complex gestalt of self-reinforcing delusions, myths and outright lies. Some are repeated from ignorance, but others are told deliberately to dupe a gullible public.

Older falsehoods are cited in support of newer lies. It is not merely the thin veneer of PR. This dubious maze of claptrap is, rather, the very foundations of the American conservative movement.

The Republican party depends upon people believing its propaganda. The Bush administration moved forward on so many fronts that single, isolated truths here and there would be drowned out by image, slogan and lies. It is possible, however, to categorize the lies and in retrospect, to create a map, as it were, by which future lies might be spotted or predicted. For example, Foreign Affairs magazine recently stated that the war in Iraq has made terrorism worse and America more vulnerable to another terrorist attack. The Bush administration can be depended upon to cite this as a reason to stay in Iraq. That the US is in greater danger of attack because terrorism has been made worse cannot exculpate a criminal decision to place this nation and its citizens in harm's way.

I no longer care about Bush's motives. I no longer care that he may be but a front for a shadowy cabal of oil barons and exponents of Zbigniew Brzezinski's The Grand Chessboard played out by a criminal priesthood of NEOCONS, illuminati or worse. I don't care! My concern is to round up the usual suspects (and they know who they are) and bring them to trial for capital crimes. I don't need a theory to read the applicable laws and come to the conclusion that a venal gang of liars, murderers, thieves and con artists have seized the White House in what even Republicans boasted was a coup d'etat!
They are considered only 'socially obnoxious' or hateful personalities, and every one of us knows of someone who fits the description. Corrupt and callous politicians, social or career fast climbers, authoritarian leaders, abusing and aggressive persons, etc., are among them. A common characteristic is that they engage systematically in deception and manipulation of others for personal gain. In fact, many successful and adapted non-violent sociopaths can be found in our society. An NIMH epidemiologic study reported that only 47% of those who met the SPD criteria had a significant arrest record. The most relevant events for these persons occur in the area of job problems, domestic violence, traffic offenses, and severe marital difficulties. (Sabbatini, 1998, p.2-3)

—Sabbatini, R.M.E., Ph.D. (1998). Brain Diseases: The Psychopath's Brain., as quoted by Rebecca Horton, "The Sociopath."
The biggest lies are told by Bush. They are about 911. That a US war on Iraq was but a part of that larger campaign is Bush's most egregious fraud. Again, I have no interest in theories but that applies especially to the Bush administration's official conspiracy theory of 911. There is not a shred of evidence to support it. Nevertheless, the gullible, possibly crooked, mainstream media followed on cue with goosesteps and obeisance.

Let's isolate the nonsense about 911 specifically, the "official" conspiracy theory, an absurd hodge podge of slogans, half-truths, platitudes, factoids, distortions, fallacies and outright lies. What is Al Qaeda if not a "conspiracy"? What is the "Axis of Evil" if not a conspiracy? And, if anything at all said by Bush at any time is in any way true, then what were Hani Hanjour and Atta doing if not conspiring? Why are 7 of the so-called hijackers alive and giving interviews? We are expected not to believe every absurd conspiracy theory but that of the administration when it is the administration that has strained credulity to the breaking point.

Bush lost the war on terrorism by waging and losing the war against the people of Iraq. The people of Baghdad have suffered most. It is doubtful that Bush ever killed, captured, or brought to justice a single bona fide terrorist. It was enough for Bush to produce a body and call it a "terrorist". Bush, of course, assumed for himself the power to define terrorist; therefore, a terrorist now may not have been a terrorist earlier. Bush definitions may be arbitrary. A "terrorist" is whatever Bush says it is. You just have to take Bush's word for it from day to day.

Bush's Orwellian use of the word "insurgent" clouds the issue; it deceives the American people and the world. What Bush calls an "insurgency" is most often a "guerrilla" resistance to the US occupation. It was Dick Cheney who claimed that we would be greeted as liberators in Baghdad. Now those who did not greet the US thus are called "terrorists" or "insurgents". Bushies are not only venal liars, they are naive.

At last, no one in the Bush administration was able to make a convincing case that Iraq had anything at all to do with the events of 911 - the catch rationale for an endless war. This is absurd and especially so when you consider the fact that 911 was never properly or thoroughly investigated.

lin Powell blamed Al Qaeda for 911. But it is clear now that al Qaeda never had a strong presence in Iraq until after the US attack and invasion. Predictably, the Al Qaeda presence now will be cited as reasons the US cannot leave.

Iraq's Alleged Al-Qaeda Ties Were Disputed Before War
The fact of the matter is bluntly this: we don't know who planned or executed 911. We do know that the various "official conspiracy theories" are full of holes. For the most part, we have only Bush's word for an assortment of bunkum and claptrap. We know what his word is worth. Nothing. And we have George W. Bush to thank for forever obscuring the truth about the war against Iraq.

Bush was caught lying about the crash of airliners in New York. From the White House web site itself, you can verify that on two ocassions, Bush said that he had seen the first airliner crash the north tower on live TV, presumably before going into the Florida classroom. But Bush could not have seen any such thing. Footage showing the first impact was not known, let alone broadcast, until later that evening. In total, seven different scenarios were put forward laying out how Bush and Rove might have learned of the first crash. At this point, we know that Bush's statements about having seen the first crash live are absurd and are most probably deliberate lies.

One version of events claimed that Rove told Bush of a plane accidentally crashing into the World Trade Center. That theory doesn't explain the previous, credible warnings of terrorist strikes and hijackings. Claims that Bush implemented CONPLAN, an emergency response plan issued in 1995 is simply not true. The orders were given by lower-ranking federal officials. A live broadcast of that event would have required the presence of a crew with advance knowledge. Indeed, footage taken from a fire station was shown but not until hours later. Even if the school had had a TV on, as Bush told his audiences, he would NOT have seen the crash live. He could only have seen the crash live if a closed circuit TV feed had been arranged in advance. It is fair to ask of a liar: what did you see and how?

Bush promised to track down the terrorists, smoke them out, bring them to justice. In fact, Bush's record with regard to tracking down terrorists is a big zero. I cannot name a single 911 terrorist against whom charges have been proven at the end of Due Process of Law. Amid little fanfare, authorities made an arrest in Detroit about a week after the strike. Miraculously it resulted in two convictions for a terror related "conspiracy". But what about 911? That's as good as it gets for the an incompetent establishment. The case was, typically these days, "rife with prosecutorial" misconduct and was said by astute observers to have been "lame" to begin with. The convictions were eventually overturned and the prosecutors were indicted for lying to the jury. The judge said,
The prosecution materially misled the court, the jury and the defense as to the nature, character and complexion of critical evidence that provided important foundations for the prosecution's case...
Prosecution lies included the identification of "doodles" as sketches of targeted planes and military bases. The prosecutions big witness also turned out to have been a professional con man. Two other witnessess - who might have cast doubt on the prosecution case - had already been conveniently deported.

Later, "a bunch of Buffalo-based Muslims" were found guilty of having attended an al Qaeda training camp, prior to 9/11. But the government presented no evidence that the group had been, at any time, planning any terrorist acts in the United States. Most significantly, no connection to the events of 911 were ever established despite long and intense FBI surveillance, surveillance that had been personally ordered by Bush. The logic that followed the failed case still boggles the mind. FBI agent Ed Needham, told the New York Times, "We were looking to prevent something. And we did. Obviously nothing happened. So we all did our job."

Bush lost the war on terrorism in many ways, but telling lies about it and getting caught at it is highest on the list of culprits. Prominently, Bush never articulated an enemy, and, most certainly failed to identify one. Terrorism is not a philosophy or an ideology. It is a tactic. It may be exploited by bona fide enemies but they are only strengthened when Bush is seen to have overplayed his hand.

The number of those calling themselves enemies of the US has grown since Bush began a war of naked aggression against Iraq. Significantly, Bush enjoyed high ratings at home and abroad when it was perceived, rightly or wrongly, that the US response would be confined to probable culprits amid a responsible campaign to bring them to justice, justly. Instead, Bush chose to lash out blindly even as he exploited terrorism to crack down on legitimate dissent. Bush chose swagger over stealth and instead of reducing the terrorist threat he has made it worse.

When Bush abandoned American ideals he lost the ideal of America.



12 comments:

Allen Branson said...

Go dude! You are hitting the nail on the head. I especially appreciate the quote on sociopaths. That is the point being missed by too many people trying to makes sense of this.

You might be interested in a book I read recently called Political Ponerology by Andrew M. Lobaczewski (redpillpress.com). Lobaczewski was a psychologist who lived through the Nazi occupation of Poland and did an in depth study of the psychology of how a country is moved toward "evil." Very enlightening.

Thanks for the blog.

Unknown said...

Allen,

Thanks for the book tip. That is definitely a topic of interest.

You may also be interested in Nuremberg Diary by the Nuremberg psychologist, Dr. Gustav Gilbert. He interviewed all of the "defendents" on a regular basis and came to the conclusion that "evil" was the utter "lack of empathy" - a characteric that perfectly describes the Bush administration and before Bush, Reagan.

In my humble opinion, Gilbert's work presaged that of Hannah Arendt who wrote of the banality of evil based on her researches into the trial of Adolf Eichmann.

The very epitome of the banality of evil is the Wannsee Protocal, the subject of a movie from the year 2001 : Conspiracy, is very accurate historically.

Thanks for visiting and leaving your comments. If you would like to receive updates via email, visit the main page and subscribe.

Anonymous said...

And Len, I'd like to include here Sen. Bob Graham's remarks. As Head of the 911 Joint Congressional Inquiry from Feb - Dec 2002, he was interviewed on the PBS Lehrer Hour in Dec 2002:

"I was surprised at the evidence that there were foreign governments involved in facilitating the activities of at least some of the terrorists in the United States.... I think there is very compelling evidence that at least some of the terrorists were assisted not just in financing -- although that was part of it -- by a sovereign foreign government ... It will become public at some point when it's turned over to the archives, but that's 20 or 30 years from now."

The country he was referring to was almost certainly either Pakistan or Saudi Arabia, both allies in the 'war on terror', which reduces the whole Bush WOT policy to the level of farce. And Graham's remarks fly in the face of the official public story that 19 terrorists were the sole perpetrators of 9/11.

Your readers might also be interested in the comments of Robin Hordon, an air traffic controller, on the failure of US air defenses on 9/11. And Nafeez Mosaddeq Ahmed's excellent historical account of Al-Qaeda's relations with the West.

Allen Branson said...

Len,

Yeah, I'm aware of the Nuremberg Diary but haven't read it. I'll get a copy.

This issue of lack of empathy (psychopathy) is the key to the whole conundrum we find ourselves in right now, I think. If you don't understand that point, you can't understand any of this.

Keep up the good work!

Thorne said...

Yay you!!! This is an incredibly well written article. Conspiracy theories do abound, and many valid points to be made, but in the end I'd have to agree... Let's start with what we know. Indicting W for his numerous crimes would be a good start.

Unknown said...

damien said...

The country he was referring to was almost certainly either Pakistan or Saudi Arabia, both allies in the 'war on terror', which reduces the whole Bush WOT policy to the level of farce. And Graham's remarks fly in the face of the official public story that 19 terrorists were the sole perpetrators of 9/11.

You can always be relied upon to get to the crux of the matter. Indeed, Gore Vidal, in The Enemy Within, fingered Pakistan.

It is absurd that the people of the US, i.e, the victims of 911, should have to wait 20 to 30 years to learn the truth. By then the culprits will have escaped justice and the executioner.

Indeed, Damien, Vidal was also the one who first made me aware that the fighters were AWOL that day. As far as I know, the mainstream has never asked about it and Bushies aren't telling.

Thanks for the links. I have often wondered: when did Bin Laden STOP being a CIA "asset", if ever? I will really be impressed if George Tenet reveals the extent of US involvement with al Qaeda, the base.

Allen Branson said...

Keep up the good work!

You can count on it. Thanks for subscribing and keep up the good work youself.

Thorne said...

Indicting W for his numerous crimes would be a good start.

Indeed! A first year law student could make a capital crimes case against GWB right now. Thanks for visiting the cowboy..and, if you like, subscribe to the updates.

BTW, all, I am trying to systemize my emails. It was getting out of hand and stop entirely during my recent relocation. Some were getting my emails, many were not, and, in most cases, my list was out of date. I have added FEEDBLITZ just Scroll down just past the archives. You will find it just under the Les Enrages banner link. If you subscribe, you will get an email whenever I update. No spam. I do not "sell" email lists. And you can unscribe by just clicking a link at the bottom of an update. What could be easier.

Re: spam. The updates are generated via RSS. I don't even see the list. Again ...this is a spam free site.

Anonymous said...

The outrageous part of all this, Len, is that the evidence discrepancies are out there on the table. How many Americans know that the US government has admitted that at least one foreign government was involved in 9/11?

I can understand that people might not be familiar with NORAD procedures and accordingly accept some confusion about their failure to intercept the flights on 9/11. But Robin Hordon's detailed evidence (courtesy of shoestring)makes it clear that flight interceptions occurred on a daily basis. It was standard procedure. This is ridiculous!

George Washington (always a great resource) spells out the high level of penetration al Qaeda by various intelligence agencies. People like Colleen Rowley, Behrooz Sarshar and Sibel Edmonds had their warnings ignored, and the 911 Commission concealed their testimony!

The French Intelligence revelations are damning. Not only had they fully penetrated al Qaeda(and you can bet the Israelis did too)they even knew from Jan 2000 which US Airlines they intended to target! They passed the information on to the Paris CIA station head and that was the end of the matter. It simply sank.

None of us know exactly what happened but somebody turned off the US intelligence warnings and the US air defenses on 9/11 like turning off a water tap! It is simply outrageous that American citizens can be murdered in this way and the US leadership can refuse to be accountable.

And, yes, the right words for this are TREASON and MURDER. This is not just politics and it certainly isn't business as usual. We do need to keep this issue in front of the public however bizarre and threatening it seems to them. It's similar to a wife who discovers her husband has been molesting their child: there's no going back, it has to be faced. To do less is a betrayal of an inviolate responsibility.

It's a sleeper issue for now but I hope it won't die. It's too important.

Unknown said...

Damien said...

The outrageous part of all this, Len, is that the evidence discrepancies are out there on the table.

Indeed, they are Damien. You are much more schooled on that subject than I. I raise hell about it simply because I am NOT an expert. My theory is that if I can spot the bullshit, anyone can. There is NO excuse for anyone believing, for example, that an airliner crashed the Pentagon. There is no excuse for the lingering belief that an airliner disappeared into a tiny hole in rural PA. There is no excuse for believing that Building 7 was not a controlled demolition when Silverstein is on Video Tape ordering the building be "pulled".

In short, Bush continues to get away with murder because JUST ENOUGH Americans are dumber than he is. JUST ENOUGH Americans are brain dead.

The rest of us are screwed by a venal administration that has exploited the media because the Washington "insiders" get off on being "in the loop". It's hard to be a "veteran" White House correspondent and remain uncorrupted by the process.

This whole sorry episode is a lesson in corruption and evil that puts the history of the Third Reich to shame. And, I can assure you, I have read some of that literature.

Anonymous said...

Just wanted to say thanks for the post and the discussion. The links seem very valuable and i can't wait to go through them in more detail.

Nice to see not everyone out there is a sleep at the wheel!

Unknown said...

You are welcome, anonymous. We all do what we can. We live in trying times. True patriots suffer most when their country goes awry. Sadly, most people still don't understand the degree to which Bush has attacked our values, our Constitution, the source of our freedom.

If you like this blog, please go to the "home" page and subscribe to the email newsletter. Your email address will never be spammed and when you no longer wish to receive update notifications, you can unsubscribe with a single click.

thanks...

Thorne said...

Thanks, Cowboy!! I check in every couple of days via RSS. I read more than I comment, but I do enjoy your work. I have you blogrolled, too and gave you a big Hollah for this article yesterday at Thorne's World.

Unknown said...

Thanks, Thorne.