Saturday, January 21, 2006

These Guys...

couldn't find porn on the Internet:

Press Briefing by Scott McClellan, January 19, 2006

Q But we've been unable to capture Osama bin Laden. He's still capable of sending out messages, he's still capable of threats, and I assume, still capable of attacks.

MR. McCLELLAN: I think, clearly, he is on the run. Clearly, he is under a lot of pressure, just as other al Qaeda leaders who are on the run are. And that's why we're going to continue pursuing them and continue going after them, to bring them to justice. We have made great progress, but this is a war that continues and this is a war that we will not let up on until we have prevailed.

Q Explain why it's so difficult to find him, just for the American public who may say, we're so technologically advanced, the greatest army in the world, but we can't find him --

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, I think you have to look at the nature of the enemy that we face, and the nature of the war that we're engaged in. This is a war on terrorism. It's broader than any one person. It's a struggle of ideologies. The President has talked about this at length with the American people, and will continue to talk about it. The Vice President, I think, is talking about some of that right now, as well. He's giving a speech in New York. And this is an ideological struggle. The President made it clear that it is a long struggle that we're engaged in, and that we must do everything within our power and act on all fronts to prevail in this war on terrorism. We are winning this war on terrorism, the terrorists are on the run and we're going to continue pursuing them and bringing them to justice, wherever they are.

Q Ideological war, or not, why is it so hard to find him?

MR. McCLELLAN: He is someone who is clearly on the run and has been hiding, and we will continue to pursue him and bring him to justice.

...

Q Scott, back on the struggle that you're talking about, and the narrow view. New York Congressman Ed Towns said, the administration's priorities are upside down; instead of concentrating on Osama bin Laden, we're concentrating on war in Iraq. And this goes back to the issue of why Osama bin Laden has not been found. And he was the impetus of this war on terror. He was the one who attacked -- well, his minions attacked the United States. Why not have Osama bin Laden captured or otherwise?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, I think you're ignoring a lot of what the President has said, and a lot of what we are doing. And I think that some do have a misunderstanding of the nature of the enemy that we face and the war that we're engaged in. Some do view this as more of a law enforcement matter. But this is about an ideology. This is about an ideological struggle. This is an evil ideology that is based on hatred and oppression. This is an ideology that the terrorists want to spread throughout the broader Middle East. They want to create safe havens. This is a group of people that deny people their political and religious freedom. And that's why it's so important that we continue to do two things -- take the fight to the enemy, and spread freedom and democracy, because free nations are peaceful nations and that will lay the foundations of peace for generations to come.

...

Q But wasn't step one that Osama bin Laden had his minions use planes as missiles?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, I think you have to understand what September 11th taught us. What September 11th taught us was that we must confront threats before it's too late. And that's what this President is committed to doing and is doing. We must confront the threats before the attacks reach our shores.

...

...blah blah blah, September 11th, blah blah...

2 comments:

Jor Jazzar said...

Yeah, Mike, I'm at the point where I don't know whether to laugh or cry. I mean, if the current justification for war is as simple as: "This is a group of people that deny people their political and religious freedom. And that's why it's so important that we continue to do two things -- take the fight to the enemy, and spread freedom and democracy...", then couldn't that mean that perhaps Japan was justified in attacking a segregated U.S...or even today, that a Cuba attacking a U.S. which harbors "terrorists" in Miami would be justified in doing so by our own precedent of "taking the fight to the enemy" and to "spread freedom and democracy" in Florida where blacks voting rights were widely reported as being violated in the last presidential election.

I'd be much happier if the Scott McClellan's of the world would just reply "...because Might makes Right!!" or "...because an identifiable enemy is useful to the military-industrial war machine" or a simple "...we don't know why we haven't found him" than to be fed the nonsense he feeds us. I feel like a kid who's constantly being promised that ice cream cone that never materializes.

And to be honest, I've completely given up on ever getting that ice cream cone. And should it ever be delivered, I have a feeling it won't taste quite right, you know?

Anonymous said...

Scotty is a sniveling little asswipe and nothing he says should be given a single bit of credibility. Same goes for his boss.