If you’re a terrorist, your objective is simple: Incite fear
among people by using horrific tactics that shed lots of blood and take
innocent lives. Make people afraid to live their lives; give them a reason to
hate and fear each other and you’ve done your job.
Never has the success of terrorism been more apparent than it is
with the common American conservative. Americans in general have been wary of
radicalized Islamic juhadists for decades, but since the attacks of September
11, 2001, conservatives have found a common bond in fear.
Fear sells. Let’s face it — after the 2000 election and the
subsequent appointment of Dubyah by the Supreme Court, the man spent the next
nine months being as useless as he could be.
Some reports had him on vacation
more than 60 percent of the time. His administration was but a glimpse of the
laughing stock it would become.
After the September
11th attacks, Republicans learned a valuable lesson. They learned
that fear and fear alone can win elections, and in 2002
successfully gained control of both the executive and legislative branches of
government.
Who can forget that debate in 2004 when Dubyah stepped away from the podium with his arm outstrectched like a schoolyard bully shouting, “tell that to Tony Blair!” when John Kerry made the remark that America was alone in Iraq. That year, as Democrats argued logic and tried to point out the direction of the economy, Republicans again ran their campaigns based on fear.
They became the “we’ll keep you safe”
party. Safe from what? We’re still trying to figure that out, as Bush’s
policies led to an increased global Al Qaeda presence as well as the rise of
ISIS. At last check, the creation of more terrorists is the opposite of “safe.”
Still, that tactic is still going strong. While they’ve added a
few new tricks to attract the worst America has to offer to replenish their
dying base, fear is still tantamount to any Republican campaign. A recent Reuters poll show that while Americans overall
aren’t buying it, a vast majority of Republicans are.
The poll actually has some good news. It shows that less than 15
percent of Americans are “generally fearful.” It also shows the party line
divide when it comes to the Muslim community. while 60 percent of Democrats
view Muslims like every other community, only 30 percent of Republicans can say
the same. Seven out of ten GOPers are living in fear, meaning they will vote
for whomever pledges the most military action against ISIS.
The spin machine knows it, and they will be going out of their
way to exploit it. While Republican candidates tweeted out prayers for San
Bernardino they were silently hoping for word that the deaths were at the hands
of radical Muslims.
If it was another “lone wolf” white guy, they could brush it off and call for more money for mental health that they could later vote down, but if it were Muslims? Boy oh boy, someone in Texas was just re-elected on general principle.
If it was another “lone wolf” white guy, they could brush it off and call for more money for mental health that they could later vote down, but if it were Muslims? Boy oh boy, someone in Texas was just re-elected on general principle.
It’s sickening, really, knowing that the American people, the
strongest and most resilient society on Earth, can be so easily played. Hagel
is smiling down on the chaos as imbeciles struggle with whether to vote for the
safety of Donald Trump’s yooooge wall or the security of Ted Cruz’s plans to
carpet bomb anywhere God is referred to as “Allah.”
It’s very sad. Tell some big bad “patriots” that they’re nothing
but pansies living in fear and giving in to terrorism and watch in amazement as
they declare themselves exempt because of all the guns they have. It almost
seems too surreal to be true that in the year 2015, people can actually be this
stupid.
Author Charles Topher is a lifetime lefty liberal from Lowell who has
managed to migrate (legally) to the backwoods of Maine. He writes from a 1 acre
progressive bubble where Nobama stickers on pickemup truck bumpers are common.