Rumsfeld threatens Bush with Bible quotes in daily briefings.

[Hamlette]

Draper reports that Rumsfeld’s monomaniacal determination to protect his Pentagon turf led him to hobble and antagonize America’s most willing allies in Iraq, Britain and Australia, and even to undermine his own soldiers. But Draper’s biggest find is a collection of daily cover sheets that Rumsfeld approved for the Secretary of Defense Worldwide Intelligence Update, a highly classified digest prepared for a tiny audience, including the president, and often delivered by hand to the White House by the defense secretary himself. These cover sheets greeted Bush each day with triumphal color photos of the war headlined by biblical quotations. GQ is posting 11 of them, and they are seriously creepy.

Take the one dated April 3, 2003, two weeks into the invasion, just as Shock and Awe hit its first potholes. Two days earlier, on April 1, a panicky Pentagon had begun spreading its hyped, fictional account of the rescue of Pvt. Jessica Lynch to distract from troubling news of setbacks. On April 2, Gen. Joseph Hoar, the commander in chief of the United States Central Command from 1991-94, had declared on the Times Op-Ed page that Rumsfeld had sent too few troops to Iraq. And so the Worldwide Intelligence Update for April 3 bullied Bush with Joshua 1:9: “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” (Including, as it happened, into a quagmire.)

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/17/opinion/17rich-5.html

This is why I fear religion. Weak people like Bush can be threatened by people who know that he can be completely manipulated by his fear of "god" (his addiction, his own weakness?). No wonder George the elder hated Rumsfeld. He knew how dangerous he was alone but how deadly he would be in combination with his weak son.

Hopefully history will record this was two cowards, Bush and Cheney, pissing their pants on 9/11 and spending the rest of their terms in office trying to look tough. Ack. What hath we wrought?

[knowbody0]

1. that is truly frightening

strong and courageous apocalypse

[rcrush]

2. So basically Bushie jr was a mind controlled puppet of Cheney and Rummy

Poppy probably has been programming junior since he was a boy.

[rufus dog]

4. I have flip flopped flipped on the puppet master thing.

During the first term I thought that to be the case, then around 05 or 06 I switched to the thought that Bush couldn't be that stupid and was an evil little twit. Then after the past few months of chEEney rants I am back to him being the puppet master.

[Hekate]

3. KnR. Every piece of news about these ghouls is confirmation of what so many at DU knew

[calimary]

5. That's what really gets me. We all knew. We knew this stuff. WAY back when.

We were connecting the dots practically from Day one - although it's certainly a lot more horrifying than I think many of us dared imagine. For example, many many many of us suspected early-on that the whole Saddam/al Qaeda link was a sham, but how many of us also suspected that some of that screwball "intel" arose out of torturing people into false confessions?!?!?!? And how many of us knew deep-down that duhbya was a marionette - but HOW MUCH of one? Or the depths to which his handlers would go to lead him around by his nuts? My husband and I were just talking about this the other day - with considerable dismay. Who knew how dark and murky things got?

:scared:

And most galling of all - what we DID know, we fought so hard to get through to people, to get the truth out, to open even a few people's eyes in the media and among our representatives. Mostly in vain. They're coming around now - nominally, but EVERYTHING we said was true. EVERYTHING we warned against, EVERYTHING we tried to sound the alarm about or blow the whistle on, EVERYTHING. And NO ONE listened. Even now, far too many of 'em still aren't.

[boppers]

6. Faith can exert a powerful force on weak minds.

How that faith, and power, is wielded, is interesting, but faith in:
Government
Peer-review
Religious leaders
Established knowledge
...has lead people the wrong way.

Religion is not the cause, it's another symptom, and the deeper cause, humans that have "hope" and "belief", isn't easy to change.

Maybe you "believe" that humans can live without "faith".

It gets very meta, very fast.

[Christa]

8. Faith and fear

The same thing

[Christa]

7. Religion is poison nt

[slay]

9. Pics here:

http://men.style.com/gq/features/topsecret

Pretty creepy? I'd say. This is part of why seperation of church and state is so important. It amazes me the things Republicans are allowed to get away with.

[Binka]

17. Creepy? Holy Shit That Is The Most Diabolical Prop I Have Ever Seen

CRAVEN BASTARDS. FUCKING CRAVEN FREAKS!

[Clio the Leo]

10. Religion is NEVER the problem.............

.... it's the abuse and misuse of it.

President is Obama is no less religious than Rumsfeld is .... his "do unto others" approach to life is more than evidence of that. But unlike Rumsfeld, what Barack realizes is that God is NO respecter of persons and that, ultimately, His desire is that we try to live peacefully with all mankind.

[HopeOverFear]

13. Right on

[WinkyDink]

14. "God is NO respecter of persons..." WTH is THAT supposed to mean?

[Binka]

16. GAWD has issues or maybe the poster does

Thinking Rummy is religious is a JOKE too! He just feed shitstain those quotes to pacify his little chimp.

But going back to the day when the ex drug me to fundie churches I never heard about the no respecter part, why would any person behave/obey if no respect was coming from their GAWD? Most of the fundies I met were doing the act for the goodies. Once again the poster in question is kinda....... I won't say.

[Hieronymus]

20. It's a stretch for anyone to fantasize that Rumsfeld is religious.

[polichick]

11. Reminds me of Dylan's words:

But now we got weapons
Of the chemical dust
If fire them we're forced to
Then fire them we must
One push of the button
And a shot the world wide
And you never ask questions
When God's on your side.

http://www.bobdylan.com/#/songs/god-our-side

[ms liberty]

12. I'm disgusted, but totally unsuprised. K&R n/t

[Hamlette]

15. the stuck out tongue with smilie face is NOT in the original

it is from the designation of the Bible quote. Which is Joshua 1 : 9: but with no space before the 9. My bad but it is pretty funny to see a little smilie face licking its chops right before that quote.

This story is still freaking me out.

[Bonobo]

18. This is the Christian Fascism that Frank Zappa warned about.

1986. Crossfire. Zappa saw it coming. It is here.

[walldude]

19. More proof that this is a "Crusade"

It's time to separate church and state for real...

[Wednesdays]

21. K&R

:kick:

[WhiteTara]

22. can we arrest him now?

I guess since politically they can't be touched, it will take time for the true horrow to reach the sleeping masses. But geez, I am sooo ready to see justice.

[earth mom]

23. Ripping the Constitution to shreds-that's what * & Co does best.

:puke:

[Holly_Hobby]

24. "When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in

a flag and carrying a cross." I forget who said that.

And besides, isn't Rumsfeld Jewish? Shouldn't he have been quoting the Torah or something?