I had two different ideas for today’s blog entry. But I can’t work up a decent take on either of them, so I’m gonna be lazy and use the Dentonian method: Reprint.

Here’s a piece I wrote that was posted on Democratic Underground back in 2002. It still seems pretty damn relevant, but how naïve I was then I feel re-reading it now. I had no idea just how bad things were going to get…

It’s the Incompetence, Stupid!
June 4, 2002
By Caroline Spector

Back in the halcyon days of the early 1990s – before our Lives Were Changed Forever – a brash young Democrat went up against a sitting president who had recently won a “war” in the Middle East. Though flush with his victory and riding high poll numbers – the president had mismanaged things so badly at home that the young contender had a foothold to climb into the most powerful office in the land.

During Bill Clinton’s campaign against Poppy Bush, there was one thing that his campaign managers kept hammering away on: The moribund US economy. The “It’s the Economy, stupid” slogan was born and written in large letters in the campaign war room.

It’s time for a new slogan.

Personally, I think “It’s the Stupidity, stupid” has a nice alliterative ring to it, but since that might sound like too much of an ad hominem attack on the person currently occupying the White House, perhaps we should go with “It’s the Incompetence, stupid.”

After all, even the spokespeople for this administration keep telling us, there isn’t anything they can do.

Which, you have to admit, is a pretty amazing statement coming from the group who promoted themselves as “the adults,” as in, “The adults are back in charge.” This really begs the question, “In charge of what?”

As more and more revelations regarding information about the events leading up to September 11 in the possession of the various intelligence agencies and top administration officials comes to light, the Bush regime has trotted out a wide variety of excuses and “explanations” for why all these hints were missed, and as each one of the excuses were shown to be nonsensical, they’ve fallen back on the, “I dunno, boss” sword.

In short, “We screwed up, but anyone else would have done the same.”

Except that is utter nonsense.

In fact, numerous terrorist attacks were planned during the Clinton administration, especially plans for attacks during the 2000 millennium celebrations. These were all stopped.

Though there were terrorist attacks on American property around the world during the Clinton administration, and even a bombing of the WTC in 1993, on the whole, the losses on American soil were relatively minor. The losses at the American embassies in Africa in 1998 were another story. Of course, when Bill Clinton tried to go after terrorists at that time, he was accused of using this as a distraction from the Paula Jones matter and got no support from Congressional Republicans.

Now the Bush administration would have you believe that there are looming terrorist attacks about which they can do nothing.

This is an astounding statement.

This group of “adults” are saying they are too incompetent to do anything about terrorist violence to our people on our own soil.

Color me amazed.

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