London's Smoke and Terrors; Bush's Smoke and Mirrors

Who's surprised that Bush used the bombs in London to promote more war on terror?

He's fond of saying that the war on terror is being fought on the front lines in Iraq.

How far is Baghdad from London? What constitutes a front line?

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Like Sarah Vowell in today’s NYT, when people get blown up I think about the people I love. She points out that when it’s not people we love who are being blown up, it’s people that other people love.

When people get blown up, I also think about whether Homeland Insecurity is doing anything to help anybody I love. I don’t think about giving George Bush more money to blow up people in a land far, far away. People that other people love.

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My wife refuses to follow the news anymore. When planes hit buildings on 9/11/01, her first thought was, “Is this my fault?”

Bush has been yanking our “Is this my fault?” funny bones ever since. Feeling guilty is a form of paralysis. If somebody – no matter how goonish – stands up and tells us what to do, we’re all too amazed to object. He’s actually talking and making decisions? Oooh, let’s follow him.

I don't know about others, but I 'm feeling pretty guilty about London. I look at myself and my family, and I think we are very lucky. But all the smoke and the missing people of London -- I wish I could do something.

Out of the smoke, Bush swoops on the guilt.

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There’s a reason they call it smoke and mirrors when somebody is trying to trick you.

Where there’s smoke, there’s terror. And where there’s mirrors, there’s – um, terror.



Chew the fat. Don't eschew the fat. Let us know what you know.