Benghazi Is The Only Consulate / Embassy That Matters

Benghazi! Benghazi! Benghazi!  It's like a broken record for the GOP.  One has to wonder how much longer Republicans feel they can milk this before it becomes like the continuing conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, being ignored by the MSM.  The not so amazing thing is the context with which the GOP keeps harping on this.  This attack on the Benghazi consulate is not new regarding other U.S. consulates/embassys around the world.  It's almost common considering how many times this happened under George W. Bush's administration.  When considering those incidents [there were 13] where was the outrage there?  A quick review of the incidents themselves happens to be very good context for the attack on the Benghazi consulate back on 9/11/2012:

 

January 22, 2002. Calcutta, India. Gunmen associated with Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami attack the U.S. Consulate. Five people are killed.

June 14, 2002. Karachi, Pakistan. Suicide bomber connected with al-Qaida attacks the U.S. Consulate, killing 12 and injuring 51.

October 12, 2002. Denpasar, Indonesia. U.S. diplomatic offices bombed as part of a string of “Bali Bombings.” No fatalities.

February 28, 2003. Islamabad, Pakistan. Several gunmen fire upon the U.S. Embassy. Two people are killed.

May 12, 2003. Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Armed al-Qaida terrorists storm the diplomatic compound killing 36 people including nine Americans. The assailants committed suicide by detonating a truck bomb.

July 30, 2004. Tashkent, Uzbekistan. A suicide bomber from the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan attacks the U.S. Embassy, killing two people.

December 6, 2004. Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Al-Qaida terrorists storm the U.S. Consulate and occupy the perimeter wall. Nine people are killed.

March 2, 2006. Karachi, Pakistan again. Suicide bomber attacks the U.S. Consulate killing four people, including U.S. diplomat David Foy who was directly targeted by the attackers. (I wonder if Lindsey Graham or Fox News would even recognize the name “David Foy.” This is the third Karachi terrorist attack in four years on what’s considered American soil.)

September 12, 2006. Damascus, Syria. Four armed gunmen shouting “Allahu akbar” storm the U.S. Embassy using grenades, automatic weapons, a car bomb and a truck bomb. Four people are killed, 13 are wounded.

January 12, 2007. Athens, Greece. Members of a Greek terrorist group called the Revolutionary Struggle fire a rocket-propelled grenade at the U.S. Embassy. No fatalities.

March 18, 2008. Sana’a, Yemen. Members of the al-Qaida-linked Islamic Jihad of Yemen fire a mortar at the U.S. Embassy. The shot misses the embassy, but hits nearby school killing two.

July 9, 2008. Istanbul, Turkey. Four armed terrorists attack the U.S. Consulate. Six people are killed.

September 17, 2008. Sana’a, Yemen. Terrorists dressed as military officials attack the U.S. Embassy with an arsenal of weapons including RPGs and detonate two car bombs. Sixteen people are killed, including an American student and her husband (they had been married for three weeks when the attack occurred). This is the second attack on this embassy in seven months.
h/t to David Atkins

 

No outrage here.  No Congressional investigation committees.  Though with this number one might think a committee reviewing the funding for security might be in order.  The House GOP though has continually voted to cut funding for security at all international U.S. bases and State Department properties.  Yet, nothing is said about that by the GOP leadership.  Then there is the loon contingent from Minnesota, Michele Bachmann:

"9/11, Benghazi Were God's 'Judgment,' So We Must Hold Day Of Prayer On Sept. 11"

Really Michele?  Apparantly the other previous 13 attacks don't merit spiritual comfort according to Bachmann.  I'm reminded here of that famous song from the broadway play 'Evita' about Evita Peron:  "Don't cry for me Argentina."  According to the GOP, other than Benghazi I guess you could say the same here to the tune of that famous lament singing instead, "Don't cry for me [insert name of consulate / embassy here]!

9/11 And Some Troubling Aspects Of Its Legacy

In a recent post I mentioned the Dove Outreach Center, a church in Gainesville, FL, having a burn the Koran day on 9/11. I mused whether or not they would have a burn the Bible day on 4/19, the anniversary date that bible verse quoting Timothy McVeigh blew up the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. To make my point I could have used other examples going as far back as Salem Massachusetts when certain members of that colonial community were hung after being charged with practicing witchcraft and/or being witches. Not withstanding the legacy of a fine practicinor of Christian orthodoxy like Torquemada, the legacy of Christian sensibilities being upset and subsequent actions following their apple carts being overturned is not a good one. That's why this business about the uproar over an Islamic Center at the Ground Zero site is so troubling.

Watching the likes of Newt Gingrich, Rick Lazio, and Sarah Palin pander to right wing Christian organizations by taking public stands against the building of the Center is par for the course in its hypocrisy. A case in point is the Pentagon. It also was a target on 9/11. Back in May of 2007 Salon's Justin Elliot pointed out that since 9/11 Muslim prayers have taken place daily in the Pentagon since we, you know, actually have Muslims serving in the military. The American Muslim Armed Forces and Veteran Affairs Council estimates there are currently around 15,000 members of the United States military that are practicing Muslims. If one were to take a casual stroll through Arlington cemetery they might be surprised at the number of tombstones that have symbols of the Muslim faith etched in them. That's why this movement to quash an attempt to build an Islamic Center that includes a Mosque is so troubling. What about these individuals in Arlington who were self identified Muslims that died to preserve our freedoms that included practicing the faith of your choice?

The movement to oppose the building of this Center is driven by the Christian right. Their actions should give anyone pause when freedom of religion gets this kind of challenge in America. Don't take my word for it. Just ask the ghost of Sarah Good.

Wesley Clark's Future Up For Speculation

As a great admirer of General Wesley Clark imagine my reaction to the news from David Waldman over at Daily Kos about speculation of his possbile candidacy for the seat of recently announced retiree to be Arkansas Democrat Rep. Vic Snyder (AR – 02). Waldham gives an on the ground view that includes the possibilities of the Democratic Lt. Gov. and his plans but not before quoting a Spencer Ackerman piece on the chatter in Democratic circles about this possibility. It is only then that Waldman throws in his two cents on a conclusion I had already made before I even finished reading Ackerman's quote:

Snyder, you'll recall, recently announced his retirement from Congress, with the speculation being that he'd been driven from the race by poor polling.

Great. So now we have Wes Clark thinking about running instead. If that happens, well, thanks a lot, you moron "firebaggers!"

Of course, we don't really know where Clark's head is at right now. And is a House seat really the thing for him? There's already talk about a primary challenge to Blanche Lincoln from someone like Lt. Gov. Bill Halter (granted, we're the ones doing a lot of the talking), but it should also be noted that Halter lives in AR-02, and it's not like it hasn't been said that he's mulling that race instead

What about a little switch 'em up? Keep thing interesting?

Exactly. As I sit here typing this out an old ’04 Clark for President campaign button is staring back down at me from my framed memorabilia collection. General Clark’s stature and national profile as former NATO Supreme Commander and 2004 presidential candidate would be better suited for the United States Senate then a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. My first choice in the 2004 Presidential election in order of preference was former Vice President Al Gore, Gov. Howard Dean, and then Gen. Wesley Clark. Former Senator John Edwards & Senator John Kerry only got my consideration when the first three did not become viable candidates in the primary process. My very fist thought as I read Ackerman’s quote was that Gen. Clark would be a perfect primary challenger for the disappointing Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) and her blue dog sensibilities.

Here’s just a quick example of the kind of progressive mind and thinking we need in the U.S. Senate from Clark’s own piece for the September, 2002 edition of the Washington Monthly on post 9/11 policies and the run up to the invasion of Iraq:

"Soon after September 11, without surrendering our right of self defense, we should have helped the United Nations create an International Criminal Tribunal on International Terrorism. We could have taken advantage of the outpourings of shock, grief, and sympathy to forge a legal definition of terrorism and obtain the indictment of Osama bin Laden and the Taliban as war criminals charged with crimes against humanity. Had we done so, I believe we would have had greater legitimacy and won stronger support in the Islamic world. We could have used the increased legitimacy to raise pressure on Saudi Arabia and other Arab states to cut off fully the moral, religious, intellectual, and financial support to terrorism. We could have used such legitimacy to strengthen the international
coalition against Saddam Hussein."

Oh, if only. Let’s hope enough people in the Arkansas state Democratic party can find enough people to convince him to throw his hat in the ring. This is how you effect change in the American political process: from the inside. Not standing around with hand wringing and complaints about how the Democratic party has let us down.