Kerry Said to Discontinue Terror Alerts

[Rose Siding]

NEW YORK - Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry (news - web sites) says he would discontinue the color-coded terror alerts issued by the Department of Homeland Security and find "some more thoughtful way of alerting America," according to an interview in Rolling Stone magazine.

"I think Americans, sadly, laugh at it," Kerry said, referring to the alerts in an interview to be published Friday in Rolling Stone. "They don't know what to do."

Kerry said he felt "a sense of bitter disappointment" by the ads run by the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth that questioned his conduct and the medals he received as a naval lieutenant during the Vietnam War. But he insisted he and others had dealt effectively with the ad controversy, despite widespread criticism that his campaign had been slow to respond.

"Look, when people hold up something that's a complete and total lie, it takes a few days to show people and convince them. We did. They've been completely discredited," Kerry said. "I was surprised that the media, even when they knew it was lies, continued to cover it and treat it as entertainment."........

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=694&ncid=696&e=1&u=/ap/20041020/ap_on_el_pr/kerry_terror_alerts

Here's the RS interview (better than the article portrays, of course)

http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/_/id/6562106?

[shadu]

1. I like his style

Time for the return of common sense.

[dolstein]

2. More "thoughtful" way of alerting? How about more "sensitive"?

Somebody Kerry listens to needs to bitchslap him for using such wussy language. How about the word EFFECTIVE? How about the INFORMATIVE? Sheesh.

[Demit]

4. how bout we rehabilitate the word "thoughtful" instead of using words

like "bitchslap"?

[parasim]

9. I agree with you...

Since when did the word "thoughtful" become a weak word? If Ridge et al had thought through the issue then perhaps he could have come up with a more effective alert system.

Apparently, now the word "thoughtful" comes across as having more to do with feelings than actual thinking.

"Bitchslap" is just a vulgar and misogynist word, in my opinion. No use for it, whatsoever.

[sunnybrook]

11. thank you!

[llmart]

39. I agree with you.

Words like "thoughtful" and "liberal" have been given a bad connotation by repukes. They are words that we should be proud to have attached to John Kerry. I believe Walter Cronkite once (maybe in his book) wrote about how the Republican Party had highjacked the true meaning of liberal to give it a negative connotation when, in fact, Webster's definition is more positive. Let's stop letting the Rush Limbaugh's of the world demean words like these. And that goes for the word "intellectual." I'm proud that I'm considered an intellectual, but they are trying to highjack that word also.

[realcountrymusic]

5. Dammit, you're right

I cringed when I read that. Cheney will be spitting that back at Kerry for the next week. He should have left it alone, or else *mocked* the color coded alerts mercilessly for wasting resources and needlessly scaring Americans when there is rarely hard evidence to support them. He should have called Bushco on using them for obvious, cynical political games, and alerted everyone to the possibility that such a political "alert" could be used as an October surprise, taking that arrow out of Rove's quiver.

What the hell is wrong with Kerry's advisers? Dammit. Dammit. Dammit. We could lose an entire news cycle debating what "thoughtful" means.

Grrrrrrrr.

RCM

[dolstein]

16. I suppose it could have been even worse

Instead of "thoughtful" he could have used "delightful" or "fabulous".

Either way, it's mystifying that Kerry keeps using words that convey weakness instead of strength. You'd think that after thirty years in politics he'd have grasped the importance of rhetoric.

[July]

27. "Fabulous"? GWB's favorite word?

The one he used to describe how the year 2001 had been for him and Laura?

[Voltaire99]

29. You're safe, Dolstein...

Nobody will accuse you of being thoughtful.

[leesa]

50. What is your problem?? Still pissed that Lieberman lost?

[foo_bar]

51. it suggests a contrast with "thoughtless"

Kerry used a lot of "work smarter not harder" lines in the debates. I think it's a polite way of suggesting shrub is out of his league.

[Rose Siding]

8. There is an upside

If B/C prey on that, it would introduce the color coded terror alerts into the same cycle and they are widely ridiculed.

But I agree that the word choice could have been stronger.

[Walt Starr]

10. Hmm, a "moderate" using sexist language

Why an I unsurprised?

[Eurobabe]

14. I happen to like "thoughtful" ie thought-full

instead of thought-less by Bu$hler.

[realcountrymusic]

17. Of course, thoughtful people like "thoughtful"

Our problem is the enforced thoughtlessness of the American public, thanks to the thought-sucking media machine. They seize on shit like this, or don't you remember "sensitive" and "nuisance?" I'm dying for a more thoughtful, sensitive candidate. But to get one in office, he needs to talk like an ass-kicking macho dude for TWO MORE WEEKS!

"You cannot win if you do not play" (Steve Forbert)

RCM

[NewYorkerfromMass]

20. Thinkers for Kerry!

I liked the thoughtful comment. Anyone who disagrees with it isn't being, well... thoughtful.

[Media_Lies_Daily]

21. Of course you're correct...Kerry is such a wimp and has never done....

...anything during his lifetime to prove that he has any personal courage.

Gosh...it's just amazing how you continue to come up with such thought-provoking posts.

[realcountrymusic]

24. Not quite sure

if that was meant for me, but I take umbrage at the tone.

Never have I implied that Kerry is not courageous. I admire his courage, intelligence, passion, commitment, and honesty immensely. I think he has been brutally mischaracterized by the media. For you to imply that I am partaking of the critique I am worried will be made is disingenuous at best.

Nonetheless, this election is bigger than John Kerry. We must win for the future of this country. Kerry seems to know this. Many people on DU seem to share this opinion. We can disagree respectfully about the tactics necessary to win, but to engage in ad hominem attacks in response to a critical remark about tactics (in which I never criticized Kerry, only his campaign staff) is to embody the approach you claim to decry.

In my opinion, talking about "thoughtful" approaches to the "war on terror" runs the risk of inviting the same idiotic, low-brow, phony macho bullshit brouhaha that greeted "nuisance" and "sensitive." So I think using that word was a tactical mistake in an election that will be decided by the way the dice land in 12 days or so with only a few news cycles in which to get a vital message through to the American people. You can criticize my knowledge of political tactics, or my low opinions of either the media or the American people's ability to see past such bullshit semantic games. But to accuse me of criticizing Kerry's character is absurd, and I call you on it.

And if you don't like my posts, put me on "ignore," or for God's sake don't reply to them. I'm hardly the only person here taking the positions I do.

RCM

[Qutzupalotl]

34. It wasn't directed at you.

Media_Lies_Daily was replying to post #2 by dolstein.

[belle]

31. Oh for fuckssake. O.K.: how about "robust?" "Robust" is always good.

Six bazillion media pundits and political mouthpieces can't be wrong! I know I never get tired of hearing it! Robust! Robuster! ROBUSTEST!!

:eyes:

Or how about "manly?" Yeah, that's it. "We need a manlier way of alerting the American people about potential alerts! Color distinctions: GIRLY."

[leesa]

48. 'Thoughtful' is bad?? Since when? Is it too big? Too complex?

I guess we need to descend to 'wussy'

[AspenRose]

3. True, dat

"I think Americans, sadly, laugh at it," Kerry said, referring to the alerts in an interview to be published Friday in Rolling Stone."

No more Tom-Ridge-Fruit-Stripe-Gum alerts!

[Zing Zing Zingbah]

6. Color coded terror alert system is dumb and meaningless!

We should totally get rid of it. We seem to always be on high alert. So what? Nobody is living their lives any differently because of it. Their system is ineffective.

[LibDemAlways]

7. How about simply

providing Americans - particularly Americans in a position to do something about it - with the straight facts as they become known and verified?

The color coded bullshit is just that, bullshit.

[aden_nak]

12. How about alerting us with INFORMATION!

As opposed to treating us like the viewing audience of some horribly depressing Mr. Rogers knock-off.

[Cocoa]

13. but those colors make me feel so safe

take those away from me, I'll be a wreck.

[Nickster]

15. You all know how the Right Wing is going to spin this bit......

You see, he is going to be so out of touch with the threat that he won't even have a coding system to alert the great people of the US. Do you want to be in the dark when an attack happens? Why does your President, blah blah blah. I'd put money on it, this is how they will spin it if it even comes up in the MSM.

[July]

28. I think you're right, but it's a loser for Bush.

I'd LOVE to see this topic get into the news. People are already ignoring the codes because they're meaningless. Their making an issue of it will underline that fact. We will laugh.

[CAcyclist]

44. Me,too

I keep hoping with every overreaction on the Bushies' part, the American Public just gets another booster shot to innoculate them against taking the Bushies' charges seriously.

[dolstein]

18. Kerry promotes "fabulous" terror plan with "delightful" alert system

First he calls for a more "sensitive" war on terrorism. Now he wants a more "thoughtful" way of alerting America. Pretty soon he'll be wearing sequins and singing show tunes. Good lord, this is guy who killed Vietcong. You'd think just a little bit of that strength and courage would come through in his vocabulary. Groan . . .

[shraby]

19. A color code alert system is what would

be expected from an administration that made up a deck of playing cards for the top 52 people they wanted to capture in Iraq...in tune with shrub's brain capabilities.

[Media_Lies_Daily]

22. It's really not necessary to talk tough to BE tough....

Haven't we had enough of talking tough over the last four years? Where has that gotten us?

[dolstein]

25. Kerry has a lot of self-inflicted wounds due to poor word choice

Kerry has handed the Bush campaign a lot of ammunition to use against him by carelessly throughing out phrases like "global test" and "sensitive war". You can keep kidding yourself that your choice of words doesn't matter, but I'd rather continue living in the real world.

[lordwhorfin]

38. Well . . .

1. Cheney used the term 'sensitive' in precisely the same context as Kerry did. You can go look it up. Bob Somerby wrote about it extensively at The Daily Howler.

The difference? Media coverage. Plain and simple.

2. 'Bitchslap'? And you complain about double-standards for sexual harassment on DU. Uh huh. No wonder you seem so fond of der Gropinator.

[cubsfan forever]

46. Interesting that you continue to use * talking points

Perhaps you should go back to that spin world that you call "real."

Professor 2

[sonicx]

36. Bush used "sensitive" the next day

while he talked about using the military.

John Stewart had a clip of it.

[saracat]

23. Thoughtful is a bad word?

My God that just sounds like a Repug LTTE that I read in Newsweek that stated Kerry shouldn't be president because we didn't want a president who was "overinformed"! I am sick of having to dumb down for the idiots. I agree that Kerry can be overblown at times but "thoughtful" ? I guess disliking that word plays to Bushie anti intellectualism. God this makes me ashamed to be American educated!

[dolstein]

26. DU'ers didn't see the problem with "global test" either

I nailed that one solid, and in real time no less. DU'ers ridiculed me when I posted that Kerry would regret using those words. But I was right.

And if you think the word "thoughtful" makes sense in the context of a terror alert system, I've got a sensitive bridge you might be interested in buying.

[thanks jon]

53. If he had only of used the words Smell Test

I was waiting for that one to get slammed immediately also.

Some times words like "thoughtful" just kinda of, you know, slip out.

[belle]

30. YES! Thank Christ.

[Dcitizen]

32. I'm cautous, wont see movie until after E day

[slinkerwink]

33. thank god! I was sick of those terror alerts!

[BlueNomad]

35. so thoughtful

is a no no word now too? When I was studying literature, thoughtful meant just that indicative that one had thought fully and completely --hopefully before acting.....geez.

We are our own worst enemy. Get off of it. So horrors, Kerry is not an illiterate degenerate. If someone can't handle the word thoughtful ....

Stop buying into the dumbing down of your own society by sounding alarm bells for the most benign logical statements. Americans are not always as stupid as we easily ruffled know it all Democrats thinks... now windsurfing I can see a few getting their knickers into a knot....

.........JK skates out onto the ice --he shoots--he scores...LANDSLIDE!!

[dethl]

37. Hot damn!

I really hate the color-coded terror alert. It will never go to green as long as * and co. are still in office because they want to control us using fear. I'm glad Kerry is going to get rid of this useless system.

[Demeter]

40. This alone Probably worth 20 Electoral Votes!

Great idea!

[llmart]

41. Thank you President Kerry!

We're all sick of that piece of "window dressing" that this administration dreamed up. Everyone I know just ridicules and mocks it. But have you noticed that since the campaign has revved up, they've dropped the constant reminders of alerts? That just proves that they were always put out just to keep the people afraid and making them think Bush was protecting us when in fact he wasn't. Besides, he was usually too busy with his myriad of vacations to protect us.

[Greyhawk]

42. I think it's a good idea...

I just don't like the idea of him raising something like this just before the election. I don't think he needs to put out any more changes to the existing policies that are less than the big picture: Iraq.

How about something like this: We will need to evaluate all the policies of this * because who knows what kind of nonsense we'll find. clearly, we need to reassess what is meant to just scare the people and what is based on good intelligence.

[CAcyclist]

45. When should he raise it then?

I think it's an excellent idea for Kerry to say he going to do away with something so useless. I think his use of the word thoughtful is also just fine.

There's no point in self-censuring oneself in order to avoid Repub reaction. It's like a wife who is told by her therapist to not say anything to make her abusive husband angry.

It just doen't work. The Bushies are *looking* for something to get mad at and if they are foaming at the mouth over something so petty as word use, it just shows people what idiots they are. It also gives Kerry an opening to nail them should he choose to use it.

[Tight_rope]

43. You know...I did laugh at every Alert they announced!

[dhinojosa]

47. It always coincided with a Bush foul-up.

Needless to say I was constantly laughing

[PartyPooper]

49. I hope he renames "The Department of Homeland Security", too!

It just sounds too fascist to me...just a notch lower than "Fatherland."

Get the picture?

:eyes:

[thanks jon]

54. yes, yes,yes

[TheCentepedeShoes]

52. Darn !

Now how will I know what to wear ?:shrug: