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 By Jack Lepiarz Oct. 21, 2006 I'm not one to get mad at a politician for negative ad campaigns and mudslinging. Right here in Massachusetts, I've seen plenty of negative ads (all of which Republican, I might add) towards Democratic gubernatorial candidate Deval Patrick. I've seen a lot of silly accusations--one of which amounting to nothing other than that he's a good lawyer, but the latest Republican ad takes the cake. Franklin Roosevelt once said, "We have nothing to fear but fear itself." Somehow, America has gone from that statement of the 1930's (long before the country was a superpower), to LBJ's daisy ad of the 1960's, to the latest ad from the RNC, which you can view on GOP.com. It's the latest from a long line of advertisements and attempts from the Republicans to use terrorism to scare the public into voting for them in November. There's a new article on FactCheck.org dealing with the ad and the threats contained within the ad, one of which being Ayman Al-Zawahiri saying that Al-Qaeda had "purchased some suitcase bombs." It also features him saying that the 9/11 attacks will seem tiny in comparison to what they have in store for the future. Funny, but that kind of sounds like everything else he and bin Laden have been saying for the past five years. The ad itself offers no proof to back up its assertions--that voting for Democrats will cause more terrorist attacks (again), and possibly nuclear attacks. The only thing the ad does is show statements from Al-Jazeera over the past several years of terrorists making their usual "Death to America" threats, while offering no evidence to indicate that bin Laden or Al-Zawahiri might be telling the truth. There's a reason for that, of course. There is no evidence to indicate that bin Laden or Al-Zawahiri might be telling the truth. In fact, intelligence suggests that most of what they're saying is in fact false. That what they're saying is nothing more than a gaggle of empty threats--none of which recent. The oldest quote in the ad dates back to 1998. Even the newest one is over 14 months old. Furthermore, Laura Holgate, Vice President of Russia/New Independent States Programs at the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI), went as far to explicitly state that it was "highly likely" that any suitcase bombs Al-Zawahiri claimed to possess in March 2004 were in fact destroyed long before he or any member of Al-Qaeda could get their hands on it. Now, a good supporter of the Republican party will take this opportunity to point out that Russian General Aleksandr Lebed was quoted in 1997 saying that some of the Soviet Union's portable nuclear devices were missing. It's true that he said that, and it's also true that his claim was denied officially denied by the Russian government. Holgate also stated, "The specific scenario of the suitcase environment, for those who've looked at that research, has not turned out to be quite as stated by General Lebed in the mid '90's when that was such a scandal." If that isn't enough, Russian Scientist Maxim Shingarkin told the San Francisco Chronicle the day after Al-Zawahiri made his claim that it was highly unlikely that Al-Qaeda had obtained any portable nuclear devices. Even if they had, he said, there was no way that the devices were still operational. He said that the devices only have a lifespan of 1-3 years on their own, and after that need constant and costly maintenance in order for them to work. That Al-Qaeda could have a working suitcase bomb is very, very unlikely. One Russian official went as far to say, "It is practically impossible not only to buy nuclear weapons, but even their components in Russia." Now, as I've said, all's fair in love and war--and in political mudslinging. However, this is a tactic that the Republicans used in 2004, and are trying to use again in 2006, and quite frankly, it disgusts me. Capitalizing on fear to win an election. It is the antithesis of what America stands for. That the Republican party would sink this low as to suggest that voting for Democrats might bring a nuclear attack, and then not even have the decency to back up their statements with anything more than the empty threats of terrorist leaders indicates that they have no issue left to stand on. Except for fear. ------------ About the author: Jack Lepiarz is an 18-year-old college student at Emerson College in Boston. He also co-hosts the Katherine and Jack Show on UthTV.com and has been performing various circus talents for the past several years. Though often described as stubborn and egotistical, he tries to keep an open mind and treat others the way he would like to be treated. Email: Jackwuzhere42@aol.com Comment on this article here! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com and are not allowed to be posted on other websites. ARTICLE THIEVES WILL BE PROSECUTED! |
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