Terrorism has replaced Communism as the Universal Enemy

[Q]

- Right Wing Pundits and damage control teams are out in force with the latest talking points:

1. Bush* was misled/misinformed on Iraq.

2. Clinton attacked Iraq.

3. Attacking Iraq is about fighting 'terrorism' in the Middle East. (New Domino Theory)

- It's clear Republican Talking Heads have been instructed not to talk about:

1. WMD.

2. The fact that Clinton didn't invade and occupy Iraq.

3. Iraq has nothing to do with the war on terrorism.

- "Terrorism" has replaced "Communism" as the all purpose, faceless enemy that never has to be specifically identified in a 'war' that will 'never end'.

- This is the perfect storm for the old cold warriors who were looking to reestablish the military/industrial complex after the bankruptcy of the Soviet Union.

[Iverson]

1. Are you sure it isn't terr'ism?

I keep hearing about terr'ists and terr'iss. I think it has something to do with terra forming.

Also, those terra cotta types may need a little checkup from Dr. Guantanamo.
(sound effects: avuncular chuckling)

OK, OK, time to get serious. A sensible response would be to exclude Kucinich and Sharpton from the debates, like the New York Times has instructed.

[saigon68]

2. Disgusting Criminal Parasites= Republican Operatives

I hope the Dom Perrignon swilled at the Dacha this week-end was not chilled correctly.

Apparently there is little else to hope for.

[salinen]

3. Without a "great and powerful"

enemy, the republicans are doomed, and they know this and play it up for their base of freaked out paranoid born agains. Sorry for the redundancies.

[Lone_Wolf]

4. Yes... you nailed it

Anticommunism was an obsession in this country. Since the "threat" of communism is defeated, we can expect an anti-terrorism obsession to sweep through this country.

Even though the media will concentrate their propaganda on terrorism, I suspect that we will be still exposed to periodic anticommunism propaganda campaigns by the media.

[salinen]

5. From an early age

Religions in America teach fear and the product is a sniveling baby crying for protection against "evil doers"

[sweetheart]

6. When the real enemy is ignorance

Oh dear. This is all so depressing.

[Q]

7. The Faceless enemy that is terrorism...

...is indeed a perfect way to not only renew the cold war...but to keep the warmongerings in power until the threat is ended. What's that you say? How can the Bushies put an end to a noun? The point is they can't...which makes terrorism the perfect enemy in a perpetual war.

[reprehensor]

11. For Perpetual Peace.

Thanks Charles Austin Beard for coining the phrase, 'perpetual war for perpetual peace'.

Thanks Ike for warning us, but nobody listened.

Thanks Gore Vidal for writing little pamphlets that put our milieu in perspective.

[Jose Diablo]

8. How can the war machine

justify the spending to the taxpayers without an "enemy". The more vague the "enemy" the better.

[Q]

9. With the help of the 'patriotic media'...they're getting away...

...with the 'vagueness'. The Bushie argument for attacking Iraq is falling apart...yet the media is helping them form new talking points: 'fighting terrorism in the Middle East'. This makes Iraq just part of the plan...a first step in fighting a broad war against the 'threat' of terrorism.

- In essence they're using the same rhetoric they used to 'fight' communism: kill it before it 'spreads'.

[Jose Diablo]

10. I look at it like this

At the end of WWII there was a threat of loss of power to some individuals in OSS. These rooty-toot frat boys found a solution. They allowed thier previous enemy, the nazi's, to immigrate and get jobs in the intelligence infrastructure. This was done fight the "enemy" communism.

Over time the nazi's gained power and their ideological descendents are what we have today.

[librechik]

12. yeah, and we're the terr'sts.

Oh, and "the Domino Theory" is out- (that didn't work out the first time) so what ever this thing is the GOP is imposing where countries fall to US Democracy one by one after being bumped by a neighbor, it's not the Domino Theory, so stop saying that! (from Rep Tom Davis this a.m. on Washington Journal)