Terrorist Attack

[Edward Teach]

The only thing that will save McCain is a huge external event.

The best timing would be next week, two weeks out from election day. That is a long enough time to sway voters but not long enough for the news to grow old.

A "Terrorist Attack" next week is very possible. And don't think for a second that the Con crowd is above it -- they aren't.

 

[DesertPirate]

Won't happen, Hamas already endorsed Obama.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Naaaah

A big chunk of Obama's white support will vanish like a fart in a windstorm.

 

[dr_mabeuse]

Magenta Alert!

 

[dr_mabeuse]

Won't happen, Hamas already endorsed Obama.

I doubt it. Bush was the best thing that ever happened to Islamic terrorism.

Pick up a copy of "Unintended Consequences" by Peter Galbraith. We handed Iran the biggest foreign policy victory it's had in four centuries.

 

[Emperor_Nero]

The only thing that will save McCain is a huge external event.

The best timing would be next week, two weeks out from election day. That is a long enough time to sway voters but not long enough for the news to grow old.

A "Terrorist Attack" next week is very possible. And don't think for a second that the Con crowd is above it -- they aren't.

Not sure that really helps McCain either ... as a big part of the Republican pitch has been we're the ones that have kept you safe since 9-11 and will continue to do so. An attack now would only show that they've failed at that too

 

[DesertPirate]

Irans big victory was over Carter. We haven't recovered from that one yet.

 

[shereads]

I doubt it. Bush was the best thing that ever happened to Islamic terrorism.

Pick up a copy of "Unintended Consequences" by Peter Galbraith. We handed Iran the biggest foreign policy victory it's had in four centuries.

Our invasion of Iraq was Bin Laden's primary goal. He played Bush-Cheney like a violin. Used the US military to do what Iran could never have accomplished on its own - and fulfilling Bin Laden's wildest rantings about a threat to Islam from the United States.

A thinking president would have figured that out before it was too late.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Sigh.

People! Look at the news for a clue how the election will meltdown.

The fight will be over voter registration.

OBAMA will swear that voters were disenfranchised and intimidated from voting. McCAIN will swear that most Obama voters are dead or cartoon characters signed up by ACORN.

So the election then goes to the US Supreme Court, who will decide that States can do whatever they want regarding voter qualification.

 

[shereads]

The only thing that will save McCain is a huge external event.

The best timing would be next week, two weeks out from election day. That is a long enough time to sway voters but not long enough for the news to grow old.

A "Terrorist Attack" next week is very possible. And don't think for a second that the Con crowd is above it -- they aren't.

Back to Teach's point: I don't think we need an actual attack. The old standby Orange Alert should do the trick if it's properly timed.

 

[rgraham666]

Not sure that really helps McCain either ... as a big part of the Republican pitch has been we're the ones that have kept you safe since 9-11 and will continue to do so. An attack now would only show that they've failed at that too

This sums up my opinion on the matter.

Anyway the next terrorist attack will be a domestic one, like Oklahoma City. It will happen within six months of Obama winning the Presidency which seems most likely.

At that point a fair sized segment of American society will feel they have no other recourse to get their way than violence.

 

[cloudy]

At that point a fair sized segment of American society will feel they have no other recourse to get their way than violence.

You know I love you, Rob, but this is patently unfair and biased. (perhaps I misunderstood you?)

Yes, we have some stupid people here in the U.S. Canada has stupid people, too, as does England, China, Russia, etc., etc. A cross-section of the population here would be so close as to be indistinguishable from a cross-section of people anywhere else.

I know folks are getting tired of U.S. politics, but to characterize a large segment of the population here as that backwards is more than unfair. Americans are no more prone to violence than Canadians, etc.

 

[Edward Teach]

Sigh.

People! Look at the news for a clue how the election will meltdown.

The fight will be over voter registration.

OBAMA will swear that voters were disenfranchised and intimidated from voting. McCAIN will swear that most Obama voters are dead or cartoon characters signed up by ACORN.

So the election then goes to the US Supreme Court, who will decide that States can do whatever they want regarding voter qualification.

I talked with a lifelong Con the other day who said that he is voting for Obama but that it won't matter because he won't win. "They aren't gonna let him win," he said. "Hell, they didn't even let Al Gore win, they sure as hell won't accept Obama."

 

[BlackShanglan]

If one genuinely believes half of the county's population to be repulsive monsters capable of launching a terrorist attack on their own countrymen in order to win an election, it's time to move.

 

[epiphany65]

You know I love you, Rob, but this is patently unfair and biased. (perhaps I misunderstood you?)

Yes, we have some stupid people here in the U.S. Canada has stupid people, too, as does England, China, Russia, etc., etc. A cross-section of the population here would be so close as to be indistinguishable from a cross-section of people anywhere else.

I know folks are getting tired of U.S. politics, but to characterize a large segment of the population here as that backwards is more than unfair. Americans are no more prone to violence than Canadians, etc.

I agree with you -- Canada has had domestic terrorists (the FLQ) and we have backwards racists here too, unfortunately-- but sometimes the conditions are right and cause people's frustration and anger to boil over and erupt into violence. Look at what happened after the Rodney King trial. I'm not saying that this could only happen in The States, but I do think that given everything that is going on (2 ongoing wars with no end in sight and the economy in turmoil), coupled with the undercurrent of racism and prejudice we have seen during the campaign that the conditions could be right for social unrest if there are serious questions of election tampering. If one group or another feels disenfranchised or cheated they may feel that violence is their only recourse. I don't condone it, nor do i wish for it, but I do think it could be a possibility given the right set of circumstances.

 

[rgraham666]

You know I love you, Rob, but this is patently unfair and biased. (perhaps I misunderstood you?)

Yes, we have some stupid people here in the U.S. Canada has stupid people, too, as does England, China, Russia, etc., etc. A cross-section of the population here would be so close as to be indistinguishable from a cross-section of people anywhere else.

I know folks are getting tired of U.S. politics, but to characterize a large segment of the population here as that backwards is more than unfair. Americans are no more prone to violence than Canadians, etc.

Sorry cloudy. But I never said 'large' I said 'fair'. I didn't want to use numbers because I have none. It's pretty certain to be less than 20%, probably less than 10%.

And of those, very, very few will actually act on their anger and sense of helplessness.

But it only took three people for Oklahoma City. The anger is much deeper this time around, and the people behind the Republican campaign are feeding that anger. So, in my opinion, there will be another domestic terrorist act in the near future.

 

[iamincognito45]

I do not subscribe to conspiracy theories so extreme as to suggest that people/parties/etc will or even can engage in such atrocities as have been suggested on such a grand scale. Small, somewhat isolated incidences perhaps. These extreme conspiracies tend to be born of irrational fear and speculation. If people were so evil or so capable, we would live in a far more tyrannical society than we do.

Likewise, while a few may resort to extreme action and violence, I believe the majority are either too measured in their own response and reaction or simply too lazy to actually do all the work required to engage in such extreme violence. It is much easier to be afraid and alarmist.

Something the politicians on both sides latched onto long ago.

 

[epiphany65]

I just read an article on CNN's site that sort of deals with what Rob was getting at:

As economy sinks, officials fear violent solutions

(AP) -- An out-of-work money manager in California loses a fortune and wipes out his family in a murder-suicide.

A 90-year-old Ohio widow shoots herself in the chest as authorities arrive to evict her from the modest house she called home for 38 years.

In Massachusetts, a housewife who had hidden her family's mounting financial crisis from her husband sends a note to the mortgage company warning: "By the time you foreclose on my house, I'll be dead." Then Carlene Balderrama shot herself to death, leaving an insurance policy and a suicide note on a table.

Across the country, authorities are becoming concerned that the nation's financial woes could turn increasingly violent, and they are urging people to get help. In some places, mental-health hot lines are jammed, counseling services are in high demand and domestic-violence shelters are full.

"I've had a number of people say that this is the thing most reminiscent of 9/11 that's happened here since then," said the Rev. Canon Ann Malonee, vicar at Trinity Church in the heart of New York's financial district. "It's that sense of having the rug pulled out from under them."

With nowhere else to turn, many people are calling suicide-prevention hot lines. The Samaritans of New York have seen calls rise more than 16 percent in the past year, many of them money-related. The Switchboard of Miami has recorded more than 500 foreclosure-related calls this year.

Rest of article:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/10/13/economy.violence.ap/index.html?eref=rss_topstories

 

[Selena_Kitt]

I just read an article on CNN's site that sort of deals with what Rob was getting at:

As economy sinks, officials fear violent solutions

(AP) -- An out-of-work money manager in California loses a fortune and wipes out his family in a murder-suicide.

A 90-year-old Ohio widow shoots herself in the chest as authorities arrive to evict her from the modest house she called home for 38 years.

In Massachusetts, a housewife who had hidden her family's mounting financial crisis from her husband sends a note to the mortgage company warning: "By the time you foreclose on my house, I'll be dead." Then Carlene Balderrama shot herself to death, leaving an insurance policy and a suicide note on a table.

Across the country, authorities are becoming concerned that the nation's financial woes could turn increasingly violent, and they are urging people to get help. In some places, mental-health hot lines are jammed, counseling services are in high demand and domestic-violence shelters are full.

"I've had a number of people say that this is the thing most reminiscent of 9/11 that's happened here since then," said the Rev. Canon Ann Malonee, vicar at Trinity Church in the heart of New York's financial district. "It's that sense of having the rug pulled out from under them."

With nowhere else to turn, many people are calling suicide-prevention hot lines. The Samaritans of New York have seen calls rise more than 16 percent in the past year, many of them money-related. The Switchboard of Miami has recorded more than 500 foreclosure-related calls this year.

Rest of article:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/10/13/economy.violence.ap/index.html?eref=rss_topstories

Horrible way for psychologists to maintain job security.

 

[cloudy]

Americans aren't prone to violence, humans are.

Those humans can live in any country. That's my point.

 

[TE999]

"Paranoia strikes deep
Into your mind it will creep
It starts when you're always afraid
Step out of line, the man comes and takes you away."

"For What It's Worth" Buffalo Springfield.

'Nuf sed.

 

[iamincognito45]

I just read an article on CNN's site that sort of deals with what Rob was getting at:

As economy sinks, officials fear violent solutions

(AP) -- An out-of-work money manager in California loses a fortune and wipes out his family in a murder-suicide.

A 90-year-old Ohio widow shoots herself in the chest as authorities arrive to evict her from the modest house she called home for 38 years.

In Massachusetts, a housewife who had hidden her family's mounting financial crisis from her husband sends a note to the mortgage company warning: "By the time you foreclose on my house, I'll be dead." Then Carlene Balderrama shot herself to death, leaving an insurance policy and a suicide note on a table.

Across the country, authorities are becoming concerned that the nation's financial woes could turn increasingly violent, and they are urging people to get help. In some places, mental-health hot lines are jammed, counseling services are in high demand and domestic-violence shelters are full.

"I've had a number of people say that this is the thing most reminiscent of 9/11 that's happened here since then," said the Rev. Canon Ann Malonee, vicar at Trinity Church in the heart of New York's financial district. "It's that sense of having the rug pulled out from under them."

With nowhere else to turn, many people are calling suicide-prevention hot lines. The Samaritans of New York have seen calls rise more than 16 percent in the past year, many of them money-related. The Switchboard of Miami has recorded more than 500 foreclosure-related calls this year.

Rest of article:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/10/13/economy.violence.ap/index.html?eref=rss_topstories

These events are horrible and tragic, but hardly the stuff of national anarchy. They are still fairly isolated and do not generally effect the masses as larger scale terrorist type attacks can.

I suggest it might be less a problem if politicians and the media were more constructive in discussion of the problems. But blaming each other, professing massive suffering, offering no direction to the path of recovery only creates and exacerbates the hysteria.

 

[BlackShanglan]

But it only took three people for Oklahoma City. The anger is much deeper this time around, and the people behind the Republican campaign are feeding that anger. So, in my opinion, there will be another domestic terrorist act in the near future.

Eh. I think I'm inclined to think of anyone who would actually bomb his own countrymen because he didn't like the election results as acting more from inherent mental and emotional problems than from politics. The act speaks of an anger and a sense of impotent helplessness that has escalated far beyond any serious political grounds. It's the sign of someone whose entire life feels like that. I think that politics are simply an excuse.

Theodore Kaczynski, the Unabomber, is a good example. He claimed to act for political reasons out of angry disenfranchisement, but the reality was that he'd had serious emotional and mental problems from a young age. By the time he was thirteen, he was already writing in his diaries that he was tired of trying to fit in with other people and not hate them all, and that instead he would just go ahead and hate them from now on. Whatever was going on there - and really, my heart goes out to a 13-year-old who can't get enough perspective on the problem to see any realistic chance of enjoying human company - it was inside of him. Politics was just an excuse.

 

[voluptuary_manque]

What are all the excited and eager conspiracy theorists going to do when the election turns out to be peaceful and decisive? How boring their lives will be. Perhaps only self-inflicted violence will be sufficient to maintain their worldview.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

TEACH

Oh! I'm betting the Cuddle Bunnies will riot if Obama isnt elected.

But Neo-Cons have no political philosophy. Rather, they sell Fords because the franschise was available. They were Democrats before they were Republicans, and theyll be Democrats again, if the wind changes direction.

A real racist wants Obama elected. During Reconstruction blacks made such a mess of ruling the South that not one was electable until almost a century later. So racists expect Obama to step into a shit-hole with the economy, and blacks will sit on the benchs for another 100 years after Obama. I mean, look at the cities blacks control. Its not pretty.