New NYTimes editorial slams B/C for "irresponsible" fear-mongering

"Chiller Theater"

"As the election draws near, the Bush campaign grows ever more irresponsible in its effort to scare Americans into believing that voting for John Kerry will bring on another terrorist attack. In Ohio on Tuesday, Vice President Dick Cheney said Mr. Kerry was incapable of understanding, much less acting on, the specter of terrorists' creeping into our cities with nuclear bombs "to threaten the lives of hundreds of thousands of Americans." Attorney General John Ashcroft was back in Washington, meanwhile, suggesting that God had spared America from an attack since 9/11 because President Bush's team was assisting 'the hand of Providence.'

"Politicians like to tell scary tales about their opponents; the Republicans have been complaining that Mr. Kerry keeps accusing Mr. Bush of secretly planning to reinstate the draft. But what the Bush campaign is doing is far more serious and can't be dismissed as a particularly ridiculous bit of political theater. The Republicans' habit of suggesting that a vote for Mr. Kerry is a vote for the terrorists - a notion that drew an embarrassing endorsement from President Vladimir Putin this week - is a reminder of the reckless way this administration has squandered the public trust on public safety.

<snip>

"We don't need Mr. Cheney to tell us what everyone, including Mr. Kerry, already knows: the threat of terrorism is real, including from nuclear, chemical or biological weapons, and defending against it is the government's gravest responsibility.

Part of that responsibility lies in taking action. Although Mr. Bush is running largely on this issue, his administration has not provided enough money for important security programs like safeguarding the nation's ports. And it has squandered resources on half-baked cases against people who posed no real threat and on a war in Iraq that has actually increased the risk of terrorism.

<snip>"

It would be nice to hear this on national news broadcasts, or from a notoriously conservative paper (NY Post comes to mind), but this is a good step in the right direction, I suppose.

Edit: Here's the URL (membership needed):
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/21/opinion/21thu2.html

This is a topic that needs to be discussed much more in the media. IMHO, K/E are dead on -- this is the lowest of the low when it comes to politics.

C.I.A. officials were so clueless they wanted to sneak hundreds of small American flags into Iraq before the war started so grateful Iraqis could wave them at their liberators. The agency planned to film that and triumphantly beam it to the Arab world.

The mullahs of Iran have endorsed Bush!

The leading lights of the Axis of Evil support Bush!

Iran, which assisted the terrorists who carried out the 9/11 attacks, and is busily acquiring nuclear weapons, has declared its preference for President of the United States to be Bush. These ferocious enemies of the United States agree, it will be much better for them and their plans if Bush remains in office. Republican Party is bending every effort possible to assist them in their designs against the people and freedom of the United States of America!


"LET'S GO GET THOSE BUSH BASTARDS!"