Does anybody actually believe that these people didn't go to bed at night thanking god for 9/11

[Clintonista2]

when W was president? They make me so fucking sick to my stomach.

[Riley18]

1. There are really no words to describe how low they will sink.

Each thing they do or say I think they have reached bottom. Then they pull something else.

[emilyg]

2. A lot of "these people" lost

family, friends on 9-11.

[gleaner]

5. There is no disputing ....

the losses of 9/11. The event was tragic. The use that George Bush and his "base" made of it was more tragic still. It reminded me of the burning of the Reichstag by the Nazis. When Hitler was coming to power a lot of Germans were dubious about the effect he and his policies would have on Germany. He spoke of "enemies" of the state and how they were trying to destroy the country, to generate fear and confusion which he could swing back to himself to gain support. When the speeches and shouting and beatings and threats didn't work fast enough, the Nazis set the Reichstag on fire and blamed Hitler's "enemies of the state." It had the desired effect. The German people became frightened enough to turn to the Nazis for protection and strength in the face of Hitlers "enemies."

Bush used the events of 9/11 the same way. He seized a lot of constitutional liberties and took them away giving himself a great deal of power that was not his to take. Every time he was questioned or dissent arose or his administration was exposed in illegal activities, he would mount a "terror" alert and raise the fear of the American people to a fever pitch. This worked well for him for a long, long time because people do not think clearly when they are afraid. They seek only to avoid that which they think will destroy them. After a time though, the fear begins to fade. People startd to think and wonder why nothing else had happened and why not one of those threat alerts had foretold an actual event. Instead of backing off, though, the Bush administration pushed even harder. During the first flush of fear he had started wars on two fronts, one of them with Iraq which had never harbored Al Quada or the terrorists responsible for 9/11.

The Taliban mostly fled Afghanistan for Pakistan and other places where they could go to ground and hide. In the meantime Bush tortured, violated the Constitution, suspended Habeas Corpus and put into place a national wiretapping and surveillance program directed against Americans he deemed as opposition. It was the usual dictator wanna be goose step. But it didn't work, because Bush, like Hitler never stopped to think that you can only burn the Reichstag once. After that, when the fear of destruction fades, people begin to question what you have been doing. If they can, they turn you out into the street.

This sounds dry when compared to the actual flesh and blood losses and the grief of the families who endure these losses. But ask yourself, do you think they appreciate having their loss and their pain exploited like they have been? Do you think that they don't know that they have been and are still being used by an unscrupulous few? Do you think that what has been done in their name by people like Bush is comforting or helpful to them? I don't, and I would like to see the exploitation stop. Not the memories or the love or respect for the loss of those who died, but the exploitation and the noise they keep getting lost in for the financial benefit of a few who crave more power than a Democracy will give them.

[The Fountainhead]

6. I agree with paragraph #2

"Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
-Ben Franklin (the proper quote, not the butchered version held by many protesters today)

Using a tragedy such as that to push any agenda is truly a disgusting practice.

[gleaner]

7. Thank you, Fountainhead......

It was kind of you to comment.

[The Fountainhead]

3. wtf?

What kind of sick fucking post is this? I don't know of a single American who was glad 9/11 happened. If you don't like people, oppose them with facts; don't make shit up, especially of this nature, to try to stir up hatred.

[hedgehog]

9. I was working on strike duty at a steel mill on 9/11. (In theory, I was

management.) In retaliation for calling management out over safety issues, I had been assigned one of the dirtiest, hardest jobs available. I was working away all morning while others sat in an office watching events on TV. I never knew about any of it until after the towers fell.

At about 1PM, we had our daily rah, rah, we're crushing the union rally. People pretended to be properly somber, but they could barely cover their glee at what had happened. They figured we were at war with someone, somewhere, and therefore orders for steel and associated profits were about to go through the roof.

[cherokeeprogressive]

4. I don't believe that anyone goes to bed thinking "thank God for 9/11".

Now, or ever.

[Name removed]

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