Is this the October Surprise? (it's in character and pretty sick...)

[troublemaker]

There's been much Iraq trip speculation, including Skinner's earlier thread and this question from http://atrios.blogspot.com/

I'm not sure if the trip into Baghdad is the likeliest stunt, but the more I think about the more I think they'll try and pull something to make Bush look "heroic." I'm not sure what they would be. Brainstorm.

I discounted the Iraq idea because it would be a disaster for Bush... this close to the election it would revolt 60% of the country and subject him to an amazing round of late-night comic's jokes that would last until election day.

But then it hits me... he is going to get his picture taken with a shackled Saddam Hussein. Why not? He already shows visitor's Saddam captured manhood, er... pistol. The only thing stopping it is what's left of our national dignity, and that's not nearly enough. If the polls get worse for Bush I predict a Saddam perp walk for a royal audience. (I think the people would reject that big-time, but they haven't always inspired confidence. And any Goebbels disciple would value the sub-illiterate visual proof of victory.)

[IChing]

1. Halloween

See a very elevated alert that Sunday.
I have a link that explains the psy. of it.

Halo effect is still in debate

http://www.news.cornell.edu/releases/Oct04/terrorist.Bu...

[bain_sidhe]

3. the link has changed

Now at http://www.news.cornell.edu/Chronicle/04/10.7.04/terror_Bush.html

Terror warnings boost president's approval ratings, sociologist says

By Susan S. Lang

When the federal government issues a terrorist warning, presidential approval ratings jump, a Cornell sociologist has found. Interestingly, terrorist warnings also boost support for the president on issues that are largely irrelevant to terrorism, such as his handling of the economy.

Robb Willer, assistant director of the Sociology and Small Groups Laboratory at Cornell and a doctoral candidate in sociology who expects his Ph.D. in May 2005, tracked the 26 times that a federal government agency reported an increased threat of terrorist activity in the United States between February 2001 and May 2004. He also tracked the 131 Gallup Polls that were conducted during the same period. He then conducted several time-series and regression analyses on the relationship between government-issued terror warnings and Gallup Poll data on approval ratings of President George W. Bush.

"Results showed that terror warnings increased presidential approval ratings consistently," said Willer. "They also increased support for Bush's handling of the economy. The findings, however, were inconclusive as to how long this halo effect lasts."

More at the link...

[grannylib]

2. Either that or they really do have a handle on OBL...that's what scares me

most.
OR they will engineer another attack and the mutant sheep that support the little fuck will be too stupid to realize that it does NOT prove that * can keep us 'safe.'
They will think, "Oh no! More Terra! We must stay the course with this decisive man of conviction!"