Orange Alert

Be very afraid ...

The perception has always been that Republicans are tougher, more pragmatic and more adept at confronting terrorism than Democrats. Democrats have a reputation as bleeding hearts who always turn the other cheek. After 9/11, the American public understandably wanted a firm and unequivocal response to Al Quaeda's atrocities. Some Democrats, including Hillary Clinton and John Kerry, understood the importance of looking tough -- they both voted for the Iraq war. Since that fateful time, they’d probably like to reconsider their vote and their accompanying rhetoric. Now we hear that Karl Rove is going to bang the security drum again for the 2006 midterm elections. We know it’s worked before – there’s nothing like an orange alert to heighten our collective anxiety and make us ring the fire alarm. “In case of emergency, elect Cro-Magnon president”. Already, the Bin Laden tape released this month, has created an undeniable tension – one that begs for some elite military SWAT team to take the man out. If only we could beef up our military alertness ... if only.

There are so many things wrong with this picture. Since 9/11, there have been at least 3 significant terror attacks – the tube bomb in London, train bomb in Madrid and bombings in Saudi Arabia. If you counted “miscellaneous” atrocities in Indonesia and other places, the count would be much higher. Osama Bin Laden is still at large. The cynical side of me says that in this age of satellites and consummate surveillance that someone in our government knows where he is. Why would they suppress that knowledge? It’s only a speculation, and that would be another blog topic. Suffice it to say that he’s still at large after nearly 5 years. A wealthy, connected man with an entourage and a paramilitary organization that reports to him – yes he’s still at large.

As far as military wellness, we have given short shrift to everything. We didn’t ever provide enough troops for Iraq or Afghanistan. When American soldiers finish a tour of duty, they can be sent back – a Hellish new form of double jeopardy. Or if they’re injured they can become another overlooked SSN at a veteran’s hospital. They are given poor quality cladding for vehicles and poor body armor. Yes, we support our troops. Dick Cheney has sung the praises of international torture and domestic spying, but those have availed us nothing except perhaps a serious erosion of civil rights and international respect.

So do Republicans still own the topic of terrorism? I hate to say “yes”. If you refer back to my blog, “The South has Risen Again", you will note that Democrats are only electable when they nominate centrist Southerners. So far, for 2008 we have lightening rod Hillary, foot-in-mouth Dean, perennial loser Kerry and yours-to-lose-and-he-lost-it Gore. With that stellar lineup, the GOP could nominate Alfred E. Newman and he would handily win. I can only close by saying, “In case of emergency – keep your head and don’t overreact.