A straw man the size of the Stay-Puft marshmallow man

I don't have the energy to write something long on this one. It's just too discouraging.

Here is a paragraph from a NYTimes magazine article about Kerry:

When I asked Kerry what it would take for Americans to feel safe again, he displayed a much less apocalyptic worldview. ''We have to get back to the place we were, where terrorists are not the focus of our lives, but they're a nuisance,'' Kerry said. ''As a former law-enforcement person, I know we're never going to end prostitution. We're never going to end illegal gambling. But we're going to reduce it, organized crime, to a level where it isn't on the rise. It isn't threatening people's lives every day, and fundamentally, it's something that you continue to fight, but it's not threatening the fabric of your life.''

Surely, not the most eloquent way of making that point, but it's clear. He's saying you can never defeat all of terrorists, but we should get back to a place in our world where they don't threaten us as much as they do now.

Well, here's a paragraph from a CNN story about the Bush campaign's response:

Bush campaign Chairman Marc Racicot, in an appearance on CNN's "Late Edition," interpreted Kerry's remarks as saying "that the war on terrorism is like a nuisance. He equated it to prostitution and gambling, a nuisance activity. You know, quite frankly, I just don't think he has the right view of the world. It's a pre-9/11 view of the world."

That via Atrios.

In case you missed it, here it is again.

Kerry: "We have to get back to the place we were, where terrorists are not the focus of our lives, but they're a nuisance."

Marc Racicot: "[Kerry said] that the war on terrorism is like a nuisance. He equated it to prostitution and gambling, a nuisance activity."

Can anyone tell me with a straight face that Racicot's comment is not the most despicable and bald-faced lie?

Apparently there's a new ad that will feature this quotation prominently.

I normally don't say things like this, but this really must be a sign of desperation on the part of the Bush campaign. It's like they just find a word, and make that word mean whatever they want it to mean. If John Kerry said, "I think that Osama bin Laden is not a good person," Racicot would come back and say, "John Kerry said Osama bin Laden is a good person!" If John Kerry said "There are many people in this world who I love, but Osama bin Laden is not one of those people; in fact, I really hate Osama bin Laden," the next day Ed Gillespie would be on Fox News with fucking chinless smile saying "John Kerry is in love with Osama bin Laden."

I'm sick of these people. But I'm not surprised by this, and furthermore, I think we can expect much more of it in the next 3 weeks. And if the only thing that's keeping the Bush campaign in power is such contortionist lies, why, in all seriousness, isn't the Kerry campaign fighting fire with fire?

-- Michael

Comments

[Cheryl]

And if the only thing that's keeping the Bush campaign in power is such contortionist lies, why, in all seriousness, isn't the Kerry campaign fighting fire with fire?

I guess the most direct way to answer this question is that the only way to maintain your center is to fight your enemies without becoming them.

On a purely subjective basis, I am willing to bet that Kerry is not willing to indulge in a lie-based character assassination of Bush simply because it would offend his sensibilities to do so. It might not seem sporting to him.

This is the approach I would expect from someone with courage, as Kerry has obviously proven he is is many times over by seeking the most dangerous combat duty he could find and fighting relentlessly in that terrifying arena. I expect that Kerry does not fear losing the election nearly as much as he fears losing his direction.