and
 promptly proceeds to bury the story at the bottom of page 32!

The newspaper of reference does more to hide the fact that five top international weapons experts discount the theory of the WMD threat being nothing but an infamous scare tactic. This it does by presenting the major news item on its "media" page as the matter-of-fact review of the latest issue of a periodical currently on the newsstands (actually, available mainly by subscription). Obviously, Le Monde considers the new fashion of fictitious documentaries and Prisma’s new TV channels (among other items placed above the WMD article) of far wider interest than the possibility that the ravings and rants against George W Bush may be unfair.

And needless to say, the title as well as the subhead is low-key to the extreme (The Issue of Iraq’s Weaponry Is Not Clear-Cut: In the review Politique ÉtrangÚre, five experts keep the debate on the existence of WMD alive).

And no wonder: the gist of the April 2, 2004, article — "just the facts, Ma’am", if you prefer — undermines, undoes, and shatters the entire controversy that has been damaging Bush and Tony Blair with regards to their alleged lies when they mentioned Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction as a reason for launching the March 2003 attack on the butcher of Baghdad’s régime. Insofar as the issue of fibs must be addressed at all, the article not only states that if "outrageous lies" were made, they were made by the dictator’s top henchmen (when answering questions by UN weapons inspectors); it also suggests that to go around carping about Dubya’s alleged lies is extremely misleading, to say the least, something which could be called a lie in itself.

In recent months I have spoken many times about how difficult and dangerous a period it is through which we now move. I would like to take this opportunity to say a word about the American spirit in this time of trial.

In the most critical periods of our nation’s history, there have always been those fringes of our society who have sought to escape their own responsibility by finding a simple solution, an appealing slogan, or a convenient scapegoat.

Financial crises could be explained by the presence of too many immigrants or too few greenbacks.

War could be attributed to munitions makers or international bankers.

Peace conferences failed because we were duped by the British or tricked by the French or deceived by the Russians.

It was not the presence of Soviet troops in Eastern Europe that drove it to communism, it was the sell-out at Yalta. It was not a civil war that removed China from the free world, it was treason in high places. At times these fanatics have achieved a temporary success among those who lack the will or the vision to face unpleasant tasks or unsolved problems.

But in time the basic good sense and stability of the great American consensus has always prevailed.

Now we are face to face once again with a period of heightened peril. The risks are great, the burdens heavy, the problems incapable of swift or lasting solution. And under the strains and frustrations imposed by constant tension and harassment, the discordant voices of extremism are heard once again in the land. Men who are unwilling to face up to the danger from without are convinced that the real danger comes from within. They look suspiciously at their neighbors and their leaders. They call for a ’man on horseback’ because they do not trust the people. They find treason in our finest churches, in our highest court, and even in the treatment of our water. They equate the Democratic Party with the welfare state, the welfare state with socialism, and socialism with communism. They object quite rightly to politics’ intruding on the military -- but they are anxious for the military to engage in politics.

But you and I and most Americans take a different view of our peril. We know that it comes from without, not within. It must be met by quiet preparedness, not provocative speeches.

And the steps taken this year to bolster our defenses -- to increase our missile forces, to put more planes on alert, to provide more airlift and sealift and ready divisions -- to make more certain than ever before that this nation has all the power it will need to deter any attack of any kind -- those steps constitute the most effective answer that can be made to those who would sow the seeds of doubt and hate.

So let us not heed these counsels of fear and suspicion. Let us concentrate more on keeping enemy bombers and missiles away from our shores, and concentrate less on keeping neighbors away from our shelters. Let us devote more energy to organize the free and friendly nations of the world, with common trade and strategic goals, and devote less energy to organizing armed bands of civilian guerrillas that are more likely to supply local vigilantes than national vigilance.

Let our patriotism be reflected in the creation of confidence rather than crusades of suspicion. Let us prove we think our country great by striving to make it greater. And, above all, let us remember that, however serious the outlook, the one great irreversible trend in world history is on the side of liberty -- and so, for all time to come, are we.

Love,

John

With a tip-o-tha hat to Rush

(2004-04-03) -- In the aftermath of news that 308,000 new jobs were created in March, Democrat presidential candidate John Forbes Kerry said today that "corporate fat-cats are padding their payrolls with unneeded workers to help George Bush win the election."

"These wealthy special interests are so desperate to give Bush some good news, that they’ve hired 308,000 people that they don’t need," said Mr. Kerry. "Some say this is an expression of hope for a better future, but I think it’s the worst sort of cynicism. Many of these same 308,000 will some day lose their jobs, and that tragic loss must be laid at the doorstep of George W. Bush who did nothing to stop his wealthy cronies from hiring these future unemployed people."

Mr. Kerry added that the corporations were just using the 308,000 new employees to take advantage of the "tax breaks for the rich" because salaries and benefits are deductible corporate expenses.

The senator from Massachusetts also suggested that the job creation figures had been manipulated.

"One must ask oneself whether these new jobs are real," he said, "since it is common knowledge that companies don’t add more employees during a recession, but only during a recovery or in good economic times, and the latter scenarios are simply unthinkable."