Convenient

When I first heard the news that a 'major' plot to blow up airplanes bound for the US from the UK, my first reaction was "how convenient." I know that this is in stark contrast to the rest of the country, whose responses were mostly along the lines "Thank god they caught them before they had a chance to go through with it."

It didn't take long for the GOP to raise the intensity of the protectionist drums that they have been beating ever since 9/11. No matter where you were or what you were watching, you'd hear about how the GOP has been protecting us and that the Democrats would just open the doors and let the terrorists do whatever they wanted.

My response to all of this was a bit removed from the mainstream. Like I said before, all I could think about was how convenient it was that we uncovered and stopped a major terrorist plot against the US.... 2 months before congressional elections. If you have heard anything about how the congressional races have been going, most of the GOP incumbents have been consitently behind their Democratic opponent in the polls for most of the race.

Here we are, a week after the terror 'scare', and USA Today has published an article with new polling numbers. Surprise! The GOP as a whole went up. My favorite part of the article is at the very end...

Tracey Schmitt of the Republican National Committee said the GOP "will continue to make the case that a post- 9/11 America can't afford to have leaders in office who believe defeatism is an acceptable strategy to protect our nation and win the war on terror."

So I guess being the school-yard bully is the best strategy.

There was also an article published in the Register asking "Are Liquid Explosives on a Plane Feasible?"

I'll let you read the article for yourselves and leave you with just one thought.

How convenient.

(Disclaimer: I am not registered with any political party. Although I do tend to swing in the Democratic way, I do not consider myself affiliated with any political party. If pressed I would say that I am a true independant, meaning that I don't care what a persons political stance is. If I feel that they can handle the responsibilities that will be handed to them properly and with dignity, then they get my vote.)