After much careful contemplation using all the information and “wisdom” I’ve acquired to date, I have come to a tentative conclusion I need to bore you with:

Unless and until we, “in the west,” begin to shift our focus from ourselves and what we want to “them” and what “they” want, we are doomed to an endless repetition of the profound stupidity, on both sides, we have all witnessed in the past 5 years.

We will NEVER “win” a war against terrorism no more than we will ever win a war against drugs. Why? Because whatever defences we invent, “they” will find a way around them. “They” are NOT stupid, at least not any less stupid than we are.

Our arrogance, myopia and ignorance, but mostly greed mixed with indifference, have significantly contributed to this problem and until we address the very human conditions and concerns that generates a degree of desperation that drives ordinary citizens to kill themselves to get our attention, NOTHING WILL CHANGE.

That said, “they” had better soon learn that they aren’t going to achieve their goals by violence and threats.

We can build all the walls and surround our country with armed guards shoulder to shoulder and we STILL will not feel “safe” or BE SAFE.

All interesting comments here, some very thoughtful. For an excellent review of Stone’s movie, I recommend Stuart Klawan’s in “The Nation.” I’m skeptical as to Cocco’s “elemental goodness,” at least initially. American foreign policy, especially since WWII, can hardly be characterized as having been “good.”  Humans’ capacity for doing good was certainly evident on that day, as so many gave their lives in the attempt to save the lives of others. Otherwise, as I never tire of noting, even if Gore won by a slight margin, half of those who voted voted the Dear Leader into office, along with quite a number of sycophants. There’s a knowledge problem, which in turn relates to “elemental goodness.” It’s not enough to do good only when disaster strikes. Santayana comes to mind again. Again and again, many of us—often a majority—seem never to learn in remembering. (Fisk notes in his great book, “The Great War for Civilization,” that in the Middle East, they do NOT forget. But then, it’s their lands that have endured endless occupation and/or ruthless oppression by indigenous, former collaborators with various colonial interests, not our lands. Well, at least assuming one is not a Native American, who might rightly quarrel with what I just said.

So, we elect our leaders, Democrats too, who while they constantly employ the term “values,” seem hardly ever to practice any. “Values” became a buzzword long ago. But, “the business of America is business,” so it’s said. Most of us profit by that business, in ways we largely don’t think about. Some reflection upon the consequences of a nationalism, particularly of the American variety, that incorporates drives for profits and power, is to say the least overdue on the part of average Americans. Why do we continue to “elect” leaders from either of two major political parties, when it must be obvious by now that most, if not every single one, haven’t much use for us other than as those who provide them means to selfish ends? If we are so good?

I also never tire of arguing that no one ever got or gets to have it both ways, i.e. we’d rather, so we profess, that all enjoyed a decent standard of living, then promptly elect to office people who, patently, harbor contempt for the working class and the unemployed. (Note latest debate on raising the minimum wage to a paltry, would-be-laughable-were-it-not-so-sad, $7.00 per hour or so.)

All is connected: even matters as seemingly disparate as events of 9/11 and the minimum wage. We are indeed confronted with a power-mongering, elite class, some of whom, aside from business leaders, WE PUT THERE! Sentiment is a fine thing; sentimentality is not. The legacy of 9/11 should be radical change, from a nation (if nation-states must yet continue to be) that characterizes itself as one whose business is business to a nation that might characterize itself instead as home to social justice. We are far from that—at home, far less so abroad. This would involve finally trashing an economics based on unbridled capitalist accumulation and its attendant ideology of dog-eat-dog individualism. We aren’t home to real individuals, but home to an ideology of individualISM that has mostly resulted in rigid conformity. The difference is vast.  We’re can-doers, not terribly interested in the costs of doing business. Americans, Canadians, Brits, Aussies and others of the First World are going to have to make some serious sacrifices with respect to a standard of living that has long been untenable—at least highly exploitative—finally utterly ruinous in the demands it makes on billions around the world.

Some learning about costs that can’t be toted up on a spreadsheet and some remembering would go a long way.

Bush can say, as astonishingly enough he did this week, that past policy of pursing stability was not very good (whoda thought he knew?), but his putative new one of pursing a policy of freedom is bogus, since freedom for him is the freedom to exploit. Back to stability, no change, indeed worse, since real business interests generally don’t reside in delusion. Bush has no coherent notion as to what freedom connotes. It’s one thing to claim we’re “elemental[ly] good,” another to practice good, not just when disaster strikes, but in ongoing fashion, such that man-made disasters are far less likely to occur in the first place. Otherwise, I expect more of the same. When they happen, goodness and sacrifice will indeed come to the fore for a moment, but like I was just saying…by then, it will be a little too late—once AGAIN. We ARE “elemental[ly] good,” but practicing that good involves making choices, considering possible consequences. I won’t even get started on media’s culpability.

the whole past six years have been snuff porn fiction. listen to the rest of the world: bush did 911 so that life would be a black mass on behalf of the rich.
arrest today for it, feed africa with all the bush/pentagon/enron money. you know that’s our assignment.
any one ready to make the first move ?

I’d rather believe this than the serial pathetic liar Bush whose only asset is fear-mongering and war-mongering! Kindly read the following with an open mind and pay attention to the statistics provided by this sober piece!
================================================
Nationalism, not Islam, motivates most suicide terrorists
Posted: 06 Sep 2006 05:00 PM CDT

By Gary Olson

Here is today’s discussion question: Suicide terrorism is primarily caused by Islamic fundamentalism. True or false? Although it seems counter-intuitive, especially given everything we read and hear in the mainstream media, the correct answer is ‘’false.’’

In his recent book, ‘’DYING TO WIN: The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism,’’ University of Chicago political scientist Robert Pape has provided an indispensable public service by collecting data from all 315 suicide terrorist campaigns from 1980 to 2003, involving 462 individuals. His overall finding: The major objective of 95 percent of suicide attacks is to expel foreign military forces from territory that the terrorists perceive as their homeland. There is little connection with Islamic fundamentalism or any of the world religions. The taproot of suicide terrorism is nationalism and it’s ‘’mainly a response to foreign occupation.’’ The objective is political self-determination. The Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka, a secular, clearly anti-religious movement, have committed 76 of the 315 suicide attacks, the most of any group. Their specific goal was an independent homeland in Sri Lanka.

Pape, who has also taught at the U.S. Air Force’s Advanced Airpower Studies, convincingly demonstrates that ‘’suicide terrorist groups are neither primarily criminal groups dedicated to enriching their top leaders, nor religious cults isolated from the rest of their society. Rather, suicide terrorist organizations often command broad social support within the national communities from which they recruit, because they are seen as pursuing legitimate nationalist goals.’’ Absent these goals, suicide terrorism rarely occurs.

Only 6 percent of the perpetrators have come from the five countries with the world’s largest Islamic fundamentalist populations. (Pakistan, Bangladesh, Egypt, Iran and Nigeria). He notes, ‘’Prior to America’s invasion in March 2003, Iraq had never experienced a suicide bombing in its history.’’ Further, Pape’s demographic profiles of individual suicide terrorists reveals they are not uneducated, poor, mentally unstable, lacking in prospects, or young men expecting to spend paradise in the company of 72 virgins. Almost exactly the opposite is true. The data indicates they have higher incomes, intelligence and education, are deeply integrated into their communities, are highly politically conscious and from widely varied religious backgrounds. A significant minority are female.

Obviously, killing innocents is a morally repugnant act, but the evidence also strongly suggests that these individuals are motivated by a deep sense of duty and view their actions as a sacrifice for a nation’s common good, its culture and community goals. Reprehensible, of course. But not caused by religious fervor. Although suicide attacks account for only 3 percent of terrorist incidents, they account for 48 percent of all fatalities. Clearly it’s the most deadly manifestation of terrorism and there is every reason to suspect it will increase. It works.

Placing tens of thousands of U.S. troops in the Arabian Peninsula between 1990 and 2001 was the pivotal factor accounting for the Sept. 11 attacks. Pape concludes that given the high correlation between foreign military occupation and suicide terrorist movements, the continued and hated presence of American troops in the region will greatly facilitate terrorist organizers in recruiting fresh volunteers.

My own take is that here we get to the nub of the matter. U.S. military might is concentrated in this region for one reason: He who controls the world’s energy resources, especially scarce oil resources, controls the world. He also becomes fabulously wealthy. Permanent military bases in Iraq are crucial to realizing their ends. How much easier, and necessary, for U.S. planners to deceive our citizens that Iraq and all the rest is about a ‘’war on terrorism’’ related to Islamic fundementalism than to reveal the truth about their motives. They’re well aware that an enlightened American public would refuse to give our nation’s blessing, blood, and treasure to such a nefarious enterprise.

The so-called ‘’war on terror’’ is fatally flawed because its planners are incapable of addressing the real political goals of those employing terrorism. They can’t afford to do so. Precious little time remains to reverse a U.S. course of action that virtually guarantees a significant uptick in deadly attacks on Americans, both here and abroad.

Gary Olson, Ph.D., is chair of the Political Science Department at Moravian College in Bethlehem. His e-mail address is .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

Source: http://www.mcall.com/…

How did 9/11 lead to Abu Gahraib?
Simple: Mad King George, Karl “Joseph Goebbels” Rove, Dick “Martin Borman” Cheney, and a host of others LEAPED at the opportunity to use fear and patriotism to start us on the path to a fascist, imperialist state run as a dictatorship. 

Opportunistic, like an opportunistic infection.

Facts? Irrelevant! Rights? Inconvenient! Economic natural law? Stands in the way of the richest getting richer! Environment? See Economic natural law? Freedom of religion? Bah! Religion needs to be used as a weapon of oppression! Competence? All the matters is keeping power! Ethics? The ONLY ethic is that if you lose power, you lose, so ANY dirty trick goes!

How did we go from 9/11 to Abu Gahraib? Simple! We put the Republicans in power in 1994 and “elected” Mad King George in 2000 and 2004.  We stood back and WATCHED Katherine Harris and DieBold and others steal the election and did NOTHING!

Sorry for no giving everyone due attention. I try to avoid answering comments rather than the ‘issue’, simply because comments tend to go off on a tangent. I am so relieved to read recent posts.

If things continue in the direction that they have been going, I wil need tol either switch off (for mental sanity), or scream!

What’s wrong with the US?

I am Canadian. This will not be a reassurance to anyone, but I sincerely believe all Canadians were thoroughly distressed by 9/11, and are so to this day.

Sadly, I also suspect many, if not most Afghanis and Iraqis are now and have been for a many years, subjected to similar trauma. Why can’t the U.S. understand this? They suffer 9/11 every single day! I am so tired of the hatred and pain… Why can’t people talk together?

Marie Cocco:

I’m not sure that I’m up to viewing the movie.  My heart is still broken for those who perished on 9/11 and the families they left behind.  Indeed, I still cannot convince myself that this tragedy had to strike us.  Had it not been for our leader’s inattentiveness to messages from Al Qaeda, perhaps it may have been averted.  If he had not procrastinated until 3 months following the strike to have said messages interpreted, preventive action could have been put in order.

Since the inception of Bush, Inc. taking over the leadership of our beloved nation, we’ve gone downhill faster than a runaway train.  Our constitution has been disregarded as if it never existed and he’s made himself the one and only law of the land.  With the support of the religious extremists and mega profiteers, he has gotten away with literal murder of thousands of innocent human beings.  His right wing congress and house of representatives, but for a pathetic few, has backed him all the way from America to the creation of hell on Earth in Iraq.

GW Bush and his cabinet should be impeached and cast out from any part in the controlling factor of our nation.  The cost will be great but it will be the most sensible expendature since he took office as president.  People moan and groan about the cost and the uproar it would cause in the country.  People are resiliant and it would all be forgotten in the blink of an eye.  Recovery of the money is unimportant.  What is vitally important is the message it would send to any who aspires to run our countey.  Thaat is that such actions, such lies to cover up hois evils, WILL in no way be tolerated!  Any aspirant should be forced to realize that he has been elected to SERVE the people, not master them.

This man, with the intelligence of an ox, has done more damage to our country than has been done EVER before in its history.  His pseudo elitist ego has and is creating a caste systen here that is much akin to that of India.  His concern for the average Americqn is zero, non-existant.

If we are to maintain our country and attempt to get it back on the route to recovery, a year is too long to wait.  Let’s impeach the whole bunch of criminals NOW!

The frightening thing, Fadel, is how many Americans who will watch this will actually believe it?  It will show us, literally, just how gullible and apathetic we are as a nation to continue to allow these atrocities against humanity (it matters not the blood or nation upon which it is spilled) to exist without repercussion.

Have we become our own worst enemy?  Will we continue to deny the obvious while clinging to fantasy, deception, and mythology?  Have we foresaken reason, morality, and compassion?  Is the human animal capable of sustaining cooperative, peaceful coexistence with each other and nature?  Are we running headlong into self-fulfilling prophecy?

Time will tell.

“How did the path from Ground Zero somehow lead us to Abu Ghraib?”

Ground Zero was simply a way station along a path leading back to some smoke filled back room somewhere.

A path the world is still on apparently.

Sorry, but with a serial liar, a war-mongering and fear-mongering at the helm, how can one remember any goodness on the 9/11 anniversary!

All Bush’s latest garbage talk on fear-mongering and the ABC so called docudrama are shameless cheap attempts at shifting the blame from the evil Bush administration to the Democrates and the war critics. I am wondering how much they paid the ABC to prepare this latest piece of filthy propaganda close to the midterm elections!

Having said this, the fact that 9/11 took place on Bush’s watch must not be overlooked by free thinkers. In fact, whether the 9/11 was an outside enemy operation or an inside job is still a debatable matter in light of the lack of facts and serious investigation. However, I am a strong believer that it would not have happened without Bush and gang in control.

Sure there was no lack of hatred towards the U.S. government by groups such as Al-Qaida even before Bush and his gang stole the election. However, the way the transfer of the political power took place and the controversy surrounding it, provided both internal and external motivations for the 9/11 attacks.

The fact that Al-Qaida did succeed in carrying out conventional operations requiring high-powered explosives to blow up American embassies in foreign countries is one thing, however, to believe that people living in caves and constantly on the run can plan and carry out such a sophisticated operation, as the 9/11 was, on American soil, certainly defies logic, common sense and even science. Simply put, Al-Qaida did not have, and will never have, the know-how to plan and carry out such high-tech operation, eluding all the layers in the security apparatus of the one superpower of the world and its auxiliary the Israeli Mossad, unless one believes that the heavy-weights in that security apparatus were bribed to look the other way; a situation, if happened, confirms the conspiracy theory and does not contradict it.

The real question about the 9/11 should be, “Who stood to benefit most from these tragic events?” All evidence points to the neo-Nazis of the world bent on achieving world control and the power of a militaristic supported empire. It is here where a serious investigation of the 9/11 should begin!