Who's more qualified?

SoulWinner

Commander
Joined
Apr 16, 2002
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2,423
Re: Who's more qualified?

Toad and anyone else who believes that Kerry is more qualified, the following is a C&P that explains the Bush Administrations motives and tactical strategy in the war on terror. This may make Toad feel a bit safer, and who knows, maybe change a mind or two. Here goes:<br /><br />"If I were president, we would not be in Iraq today, we would not be at war." --John F. Kerry on the campaign trail.<br /><br />Amid all the 20/20 hindsight and politically motivated finger-pointing from a few shameless partisans on the 9/11 Commission (and you know who you are ... Richie, Bobby, Jamie), an exceedingly high-stakes contest is emerging. It's a contest about how the United States will classify and respond to terrorist threats in the future. <br /><br />In an effort to undermine President George Bush's doctrine of preemption -- a dramatic doctrinal departure from the Clinton administration's doctrine of, well, actually the Clinton administration had no coherent doctrine whatsoever -- John Kerry's high-profile minions on the "bipartisan" commission are spinning furiously. Indeed, they're suggesting that when state-supported Jihadi terrorists do things like slam commercial airliners into skyscrapers killing thousands of our fellow countrymen, these actions constitute "criminal acts" rather than "acts of war." <br /><br />Such assertions about the nature of terrorism sound antiquated yet tragically familiar. You'll recall that treating terrorism as a "criminal act" was the Clinton administration's policy -- an approach that left our nation all but naked on that fateful September morn. In a very real way, then, such assertions serve to remind us of the ultimate Clinton legacy -- the legacy of its failure to grasp the wicked and ruthless nature of our Jihadi adversary. These Jihadis know they are serving an agenda that is far more ambitious than "criminal conspiracy." <br /><br />It's long past time that Kerry, et al., put aside petty political agendas, which reach back to Clinton-regime malfeasance in order to make a political distinction, and rise to the defense of our nation and national interests. Treating the Iraqi warfront with Jihadistan as political fodder is not only reckless, it is treasonous. <br /><br />The United States is at war. We are not -- not -- merely the victim of a crime. Since 1993, the year of the first Islamist attack on the World Trade Center, our homeland has been a frontline in the war with Jihadistan, that borderless, global alliance of Islamist groups that continues to target the U.S. as a focal point of revenge for Islamic nation states.<br /><br />As President Bush stated the very night of the 11 September 2001 attack on our nation, "We will make no distinction between the terrorists who committed these acts and those who harbor them." <br /><br />Addressing the nation later that week, the President outlined the task ahead with clarity and purpose: "On September the 11th, enemies of freedom committed an act of war against our country. Americans have known wars -- but for the past 136 years, they have been wars on foreign soil, except for one Sunday in 1941. Americans have known the casualties of war -- but not at the center of a great city on a peaceful morning. Americans have known surprise attacks -- but never before on thousands of civilians. ... Our war on terror begins with al-Qa'ida, but it does not end there. It will not end until every terrorist group of global reach has been found, stopped and defeated. ... This war will not be like the war against Iraq a decade ago, with a decisive liberation of territory and a swift conclusion. ... The course of this conflict is not known, yet its outcome is certain. Freedom and fear, justice and cruelty, have always been at war, and we know that God is not neutral between them." <br /><br />The principal objective of President Bush's doctrine of preemption is to keep the front lines of this war on our adversary's turf, rather than our own. The protests of the Left notwithstanding, this is a war that can be resolved neither diplomatically nor defensively. Instead, this is a war that must be resolved by way of resounding military preemption. Sadly, however, the lessons of history -- even very recent history -- seem lost on Kerry and company. <br /><br />In the interest of his political campaign (because it's clearly not in the national interest), Kerry is now implying that President Bush was wrong to have deposed Saddam Hussein and his Ba'athist regime. Kerry, who voted in support of the Iraq war but against the subsequent funding of our troops, seems to be in denial of the possibility that Saddam's WMD might have one day found their way into the hands of al-Qa'ida or another terrorist group. Instead, he seems certain that there never were any weapons of mass destruction and that the war in Iraq is thus unjustified. Indeed, this head-in-the-sand position has become the centerpiece of the Kerry campaign. <br /><br />While the U.S. advance on the Iraqi warfront with Jihadistan is certainly just, we can only hope that Kerry is correct in his WMD assessment. Unfortunately, hope alone will not prevent the detonation of a nuclear weapon in an East Coast urban center. However, if candidate Kerry has his way, the 9/11 Commission will serve as his "big stick" to beat back the Bush doctrine of preemption, and restore Clinton's failed "criminal acts" approach to the prosecution of terrorists.<br /><br />This week, in fact, Kerry re-warmed Clinton policy, staking it out as his own: "In order to know who they are, where they are, what they're planning and be able to go get them before they get us, you need the best intelligence, best law-enforcement cooperation in the world. I will use our military when necessary, but it is not primarily a military operation. It's an intelligence-gathering, law-enforcement, public-diplomacy effort, and we're putting far more money into the war on the battlefield than we are into the war of ideas. We need to get it straight." <br /><br />Got that? Kerry is lecturing -- or, rather, hectoring -- that the politically-motivated mass murder of innocent civilians amounts to a "war of ideas" and is thus more suitable for law enforcement and criminal prosecution than for capturing or killing the terrorists preemptively. It's an approach that's perfectly suited to a policymaker prone to dithering and waffling, a show-horse set on talking tough and acting indifferent. (Sound familiar?) <br /><br />Meanwhile, according to our analysts, the FBI estimates that there are still active Jihadi terrorist cells in U.S. urban centers on the East Coast -- cells materially supported by domestic Islamic groups. Care to venture who they'll be rooting for in this year's presidential campaign? <br /><br />Quote of the week... <br /><br />"John Kerry is professing to be amazed that George Bush is highlighting the terror threat to the U.S. in this year's election. Actually, I suspect that Kerry is more upset than surprised. Kerry knows for a certainty that if, between now and November, the American people suddenly wake up and recognize the grave threat posed to this country by Islamic fanatics, he will be toast on November 2nd." --Neal Boortz
 

JB

Honorary Moderator Emeritus
Joined
Mar 25, 2001
Messages
45,907
Re: Who's more qualified?

At last!! :D <br /><br />Somebody's posting about something that really matters.<br /><br />Thanks, SW. :)
 

Toad2001

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Jul 22, 2003
Messages
403
Re: Who's more qualified?

I agree. Good post. I always read the Federalist, and its a good read.<br />Re: Criminal vs Acts of war, it may be a moot point though. Is there any link between Bin Laden/Al Queda and "state" supported terrorism? I have suspicions (and it never was in Iraq), but is there any proof?
 

bobingardner

Petty Officer 3rd Class
Joined
Feb 8, 2003
Messages
84
Re: Who's more qualified?

Whoever wrote this put a lot of thought into it and thank you SouldWinner for posting it. But, I do have some issues with it.<br /><br />
<br />"If I were president, we would not be in Iraq today, we would not be at war." --John F. Kerry on the campaign trail.<br />
Sounds like Kerry.<br /><br />
<br />Amid all the 20/20 hindsight and politically motivated finger-pointing from a few shameless partisans on the 9/11 Commission (and you know who you are ... Richie, Bobby, Jamie), an exceedingly high-stakes contest is emerging. It's a contest about how the United States will classify and respond to terrorist threats in the future.<br /><br />[In an effort to undermine President George Bush's doctrine of preemption -- a dramatic doctrinal departure from the Clinton administration's doctrine of, well, actually the Clinton administration had no coherent doctrine whatsoever <br /><br />-- John Kerry's high-profile minions on the "bipartisan" commission are spinning furiously. Indeed, they're suggesting that when state-supported Jihadi terrorists do things like slam commercial airliners into skyscrapers killing thousands of our fellow countrymen, these actions constitute "criminal acts" rather than "acts of war."<br />
He's absolutely correct about this being a high-stakes contest but doesn't some of his text seem to be an example of the partisan rehetoric we find so repulsive in the liberal press? For example the use of the words "underimine" and "minions" conjur up sinister activities carried out by sycophants. Isn't it possible that Kerry honestly believes Bush's premptive doctrine is flawed and isn't equally possible that not everyone who agrees is a minion? I believe the point the author is trying to make is that we need to get beyond the type of inflammitory speech that the author is indulging in. I love his sense of irony, and I agree.<br /><br />
<br />Such assertions about the nature of terrorism sound antiquated yet tragically familiar. You'll recall that treating terrorism as a "criminal act" was the Clinton administration's policy -- an approach that left our nation all but naked on that fateful September morn. In a very real way, then, such assertions serve to remind us of the ultimate Clinton legacy -- the legacy of its failure to grasp the wicked and ruthless nature of our Jihadi adversary. These Jihadis know they are serving an agenda that is far more ambitious than "criminal conspiracy."<br />
Seems like more partisan rhetoric. Is he trying to tell us that Clinton's failure to solve the problem was the cause of Sept. 11? I guess I'd have to agree. I'll also have to agree with the democrats who make this claim after the next attack on US soil, assuming George Bush is still in office. Otherwise I'll have to agree with the republicans that Kerry didn't do enough. And what about the many attacks that have occured since then?<br /><br />
<br />It's long past time that Kerry, et al., put aside petty political agendas, which reach back to Clinton-regime malfeasance in order to make a political distinction, and rise to the defense of our nation and national interests. Treating the Iraqi warfront with Jihadistan as political fodder is not only reckless, it is treasonous.<br />
I just wish he had included a few factual examples of the malefeasence he's talking about. Maybe what the democrats need is someone to explain exactly what it means to rise to the defense of our nation. Maybe that's what the country needs to be discussing.<br /><br />
<br />The United States is at war. We are not -- not -- merely the victim of a crime. Since 1993, the year of the first Islamist attack on the World Trade Center, our homeland has been a frontline in the war with Jihadistan, that borderless, global alliance of Islamist groups that continues to target the U.S. as a focal point of revenge for Islamic nation states.<br /><br />As President Bush stated the very night of the 11 September 2001 attack on our nation, "We will make no distinction between the terrorists who committed these acts and those who harbor them."<br /><br />Addressing the nation later that week, the President outlined the task ahead with clarity and purpose: "On September the 11th, enemies of freedom committed an act of war against our country. Americans have known wars -- but for the past 136 years, they have been wars on foreign soil, except for one Sunday in 1941. Americans have known the casualties of war -- but not at the center of a great city on a peaceful morning. Americans have known surprise attacks -- but never before on thousands of civilians. ... Our war on terror begins with al-Qa'ida, but it does not end there. It will not end until every terrorist group of global reach has been found, stopped and defeated. ... This war will not be like the war against Iraq a decade ago, with a decisive liberation of territory and a swift conclusion. ... The course of this conflict is not known, yet its outcome is certain. Freedom and fear, justice and cruelty, have always been at war, and we know that God is not neutral between them."<br />
OK no agrument with any of that, except the reference to God and his perspective on Freedom and fear and justice and cruelty. I'm sure he's not neutral between them but I have no idea how he views each of us. Who does he think are the just and who are the torturers. To be honest with you I don't think he really cares. He created a garden of eden for us to share and when we failed him he stepped back and left us to ourselves. <br /><br />
<br />The principal objective of President Bush's doctrine of preemption is to keep the front lines of this war on our adversary's turf, rather than our own. <br />
YES!!! Finally, someone who gets it. Was it the right thing to do? I don't know. I had hoped Al Queda would be stupid enough to take a lead role in a visible way on the front line.<br /><br />
<br />The protests of the Left notwithstanding, this is a war that can be resolved neither diplomatically nor defensively. Instead, this is a war that must be resolved by way of resounding military preemption. Sadly, however, the lessons of history -- even very recent history -- seem lost on Kerry and company.<br />
Sigh! Another good point stained with political rhetoric.<br /><br />
<br />In the interest of his political campaign (because it's clearly not in the national interest), Kerry is now implying that President Bush was wrong to have deposed Saddam Hussein and his Ba'athist regime. <br />
<br />Kerry, who voted in support of the Iraq war but against the subsequent funding of our troops, seems to be in denial of the possibility that Saddam's WMD might have one day found their way into the hands of al-Qa'ida or another terrorist group.<br />
The way I understand it Kerry voted for the war with expectation that the US would build an international consensus of signifigant economic and military powers. It doesn't appear to have worked out that way. I wish the author had posted links to the bills that were voted on so I could have a better understanding of what Kerry voted for or against.<br />
<br /> Instead, he seems certain that there never were any weapons of mass destruction and that the war in Iraq is thus unjustified. Indeed, this head-in-the-sand position has become the centerpiece of the Kerry campaign.<br />
Where are the weapons?<br /><br />
<br />While the U.S. advance on the Iraqi warfront with Jihadistan is certainly just, we can only hope that Kerry is correct in his WMD assessment. Unfortunately, hope alone will not prevent the detonation of a nuclear weapon in an East Coast urban center. However, if candidate Kerry has his way, the 9/11 Commission will serve as his "big stick" to beat back the Bush doctrine of preemption, and restore Clinton's failed "criminal acts" approach to the prosecution of terrorists.<br />
Again seems like more of an opinion with a slight hint of paranoia.<br /><br />
<br />This week, in fact, Kerry re-warmed Clinton policy, staking it out as his own: "In order to know who they are, where they are, what they're planning and be able to go get them before they get us, you need the best intelligence, best law-enforcement cooperation in the world. I will use our military when necessary, but it is not primarily a military operation. It's an intelligence-gathering, law-enforcement, public-diplomacy effort, and we're putting far more money into the war on the battlefield than we are into the war of ideas. We need to get it straight."<br /><br />Got that? Kerry is lecturing -- or, rather, hectoring -- that the politically-motivated mass murder of innocent civilians amounts to a "war of ideas" and is thus more suitable for law enforcement and criminal prosecution than for capturing or killing the terrorists preemptively. It's an approach that's perfectly suited to a policymaker prone to dithering and waffling, a show-horse set on talking tough and acting indifferent. (Sound familiar?)<br />
Was that the entire statement? I think the author may have read too much into that statement. Kerry did say he would use the military when neccessary. I guess he needed to be more exact as to the circumstances under which he would use them. Given the terrible cost of war what is wrong with being deliberate in waging it. One of my biggest complaints about Mr. Bush is that I see him as being a cowboy. If he had been a little more deliberate he might have seen the complications that have recently developed in Iraq. I think Mr. Kerry's position on war reflects his experience in Vietnam. What experience Does Mr. Bush have to draw on?<br />
<br />Meanwhile, according to our analysts, the FBI estimates that there are still active Jihadi terrorist cells in U.S. urban centers on the East Coast -- cells materially supported by domestic Islamic groups. Care to venture who they'll be rooting for in this year's presidential campaign?<br />
Is this a fact or a biased guess? Has Gallop taken a poll of U.S. Based terrorist?<br />
<br />Quote of the week...<br /><br />"John Kerry is professing to be amazed that George Bush is highlighting the terror threat to the U.S. in this year's election. Actually, I suspect that Kerry is more upset than surprised. Kerry knows for a certainty that if, between now and November, the American people suddenly wake up and recognize the grave threat posed to this country by Islamic fanatics, he will be toast on November 2nd." --Neal Boortz<br /><br />--------------------
I agree and what's more I fully supported Mr. Bush's use of the Sept. 11 images for his politcal campaing.
 

SoulWinner

Commander
Joined
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Messages
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Re: Who's more qualified?

"The lesson of 9/11 has already been learned and a doctrine to prevent its repetition has been formulated. Without actually saying it, President Bush made it plain that as a nation, we are tired of being surprised by our enemies, over and over again. What else, after all, is the Bush doctrine of preemption? We are not, it says, going to wait around for the opportunity to turn the other cheek. If you are planning on hitting us with a surprise attack, be prepared to be surprised, yourself. ...And, then, preemption isn't much of a doctrine unless your enemies believe you mean it." --Geoffrey Norman
 
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