The Plot Thins

I must admit, when I first heard of the foiled plot to bomb New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, with calls coming from different parts of the country to "see if I was alright", I thought to myself, "You've got to be kidding." I didn't even know about said plot until those calls actually came. But being the cynic that the Bush administration has made me, my first response was, "Thank God... the Republicans saved our lives..."

So imagine my complete expectation just four days after the announcement of the supposed plot, word that the credibility of the terror case was suspect in the first place. Really? Nah...

This from New York Newsday on June 6th:

When U.S. Attorney Roslynn Mauskopf described the alleged terror plot to blow up Kennedy Airport as "one of the most chilling plots imaginable," which might have caused "unthinkable" devastation, one law enforcement official said he cringed. The plot, he knew, was never operational. The public had never been at risk. And the notion of blowing up the airport, let alone the borough of Queens, by exploding a fuel tank was in all likelihood a technical impossibility.

And now, with a portrait emerging of alleged mastermind Russell Defreitas as hapless and episodically homeless, and of co-conspirator Abdel Nur as a drug addict, Mauskopf's initial characterizations seem more questionable -- some go so far as to say hyped.

"I think her comments were over the top," said Michael Greenberger, director of the Center for Health and Homeland Security at the University of Maryland. "It was a totally overstated characterization that doesn't comport with the facts."

Greenberger said he has no argument with police pursuing and stopping the alleged plotters."I think they were correct to take this seriously," he said. "... But there's a pattern here of Justice Department attorneys overstating what they have. I think they feel under tremendous pressure to vindicate the elaborate counterterrorism structure they've created since 9/11, including the Patriot Act."

Here is fear mongering at its best. Gone are the days of orange terror alerts. Remember those halcion days? Color coded terror alerts went the way of the circular file when people figured out that anytime Republicans were slipping in the polls during the 2004 election campaign, all they had to do was circle the wagons and tell the country we were at "high alert" orange. This way, everyone would hide in their shells and thank whoever they needed to for those "strong on defense" Republicans.

Don't misunderstand me. Anyone stupid enough to even begin thinking of something as ludicrous as plotting to blow up JFK should be arrested. At the very least it strengthens the gene pool.

But must we stop the presses every time we get a couple of wackos that amount to nothing in the "war of terror"? Do we have to cut to a live press conference to announce to the world that we were able to apprehend a homeless man from Trinidad and a drug addict from Guyana because they hatred of our freedom, and now we're all the safer because of it? Is the government that desperate that they must hold these pathetic souls up as proof to try and convince us that the war of terror is working? Don't answer that last question, it was rhetorical.

But it doesn't end there. Rudy Giuliani, in his zeal to show he's the saviour of our time, gloms on to this plot at the latest Republican Debate and uses it as an example that we "have to fight them over there so we don't fight them here."

Earth to Rudy: Are we to start wars against Guyana and Trinidad as well? I'll bring the tequila. How about the Timothy McVeighs of the country, Rudy? Where do we fight them?

And then there's poor (billionaire) and current New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who took my attitude about the whole JFK fiasco:
"There are lots of threats to you in the world. There's the threat of a heart attack for genetic reasons. You can't sit there and worry about everything. Get a life," he said. "You have a much greater danger of being hit by lightning than being struck by a terrorist," he added.

Good for Mike! I'm sure he's going to receive tons of criticism, but at least he spoke out and didn't follow the rest of the sheeple. Of course, with talk like that, I don't know how much longer he'll be a Republican.