Wednesday, December 21, 2005
... when they pry my hot, crispy fingers ...
Listening to Rush grilling Larry Craig this morning. Craig shoveled out such a pile of Useful Idiocy that Rush couldn't handle all of it in the short time available.
Refreshing to hear one of those Beltway types getting heat from the Right; it's obvious that they rarely hear questions from the pro-American side. Everything they get from the 'press' is explicitly and literally pro-enemy: "Why haven't you surrendered yet? Give us a date for your surrender." So their habits of thought are naturally pulled in that direction, no matter how firm their original intentions.
Polistra is especially irritated by Craig's notion that if we haven't yet used a provision in the Patriot Act, we should get rid of it. Fantastically silly and dangerous. Craig is a big gun in NRA circles, yet he doesn't seem to understand the basic point of weapons.
Whether you're talking about guns, screwdrivers, fire extinguishers, or wiretap systems, the purpose of owning a tool is to have it AVAILABLE WHEN YOU NEED IT. If you never use it, that's fine; as long as you have it and know how to use it, the tool can save your, um, bacon.
And when you're talking about fighting a human enemy, availability and readiness can make all the difference. The bacon won't avoid burning because I own a fire extinguisher, but an arsonist who knows that I have several extinguishers and a sprinkler system will find a building where he can achieve a more dramatic result.
An available weapon can even be better than a known and used weapon. Before Katrina, a bio-chem terrorist might have been impressed by FEMA. After Katrina, FEMA was exposed as rusty and useless. Or consider Saddam's mighty biological and nuclear arsenal. It caused us to fight far more carefully and slowly than we might have otherwise, and then it turned out to be a well-written myth.
All the more reason to keep a maximal variety of unknown but potentially useful weapons or tools, and to convince the enemy that we are willing to use any and all of these tools.
You can be sure that Zarqawi's American representatives have taken note of Useful Idiot Craig's finicky refusal to go along with our war preparations. Because UI Craig wears the 'Republican' label, his actions will serve as a nice solid wedge to weaken the mental defenses of otherwise loyal Americans. ¶ 2:31 PM
Listening to Rush grilling Larry Craig this morning. Craig shoveled out such a pile of Useful Idiocy that Rush couldn't handle all of it in the short time available.
Refreshing to hear one of those Beltway types getting heat from the Right; it's obvious that they rarely hear questions from the pro-American side. Everything they get from the 'press' is explicitly and literally pro-enemy: "Why haven't you surrendered yet? Give us a date for your surrender." So their habits of thought are naturally pulled in that direction, no matter how firm their original intentions.
Polistra is especially irritated by Craig's notion that if we haven't yet used a provision in the Patriot Act, we should get rid of it. Fantastically silly and dangerous. Craig is a big gun in NRA circles, yet he doesn't seem to understand the basic point of weapons.
Whether you're talking about guns, screwdrivers, fire extinguishers, or wiretap systems, the purpose of owning a tool is to have it AVAILABLE WHEN YOU NEED IT. If you never use it, that's fine; as long as you have it and know how to use it, the tool can save your, um, bacon.
And when you're talking about fighting a human enemy, availability and readiness can make all the difference. The bacon won't avoid burning because I own a fire extinguisher, but an arsonist who knows that I have several extinguishers and a sprinkler system will find a building where he can achieve a more dramatic result.
An available weapon can even be better than a known and used weapon. Before Katrina, a bio-chem terrorist might have been impressed by FEMA. After Katrina, FEMA was exposed as rusty and useless. Or consider Saddam's mighty biological and nuclear arsenal. It caused us to fight far more carefully and slowly than we might have otherwise, and then it turned out to be a well-written myth.
All the more reason to keep a maximal variety of unknown but potentially useful weapons or tools, and to convince the enemy that we are willing to use any and all of these tools.
You can be sure that Zarqawi's American representatives have taken note of Useful Idiot Craig's finicky refusal to go along with our war preparations. Because UI Craig wears the 'Republican' label, his actions will serve as a nice solid wedge to weaken the mental defenses of otherwise loyal Americans. ¶ 2:31 PM
