(no subject)

From an Associated Press report, 6/11/2002, on President Bush's intentions to introduce a "strike first" military policy in this fall's national security strategy presentation to Congress:

Cheney ... emphasized that the United States has a special responsibility to initiate military action if it will thwart grand-scale terrorist plots before they happen.

"The nature and scale of the challenge we face became apparent last year on the morning of Sept. 11," Cheney said. "It is now clear that every aspiration we have for the countries we serve -- our prosperity, our security and the peace of the world -- all depend upon our answer to that threat of global terror."

Specifically, he said, Iraq poses a threat because its leader, Saddam Hussein, has shown a willingness to use weapons of mass destruction, and because there is potential for Saddam's government to link up with terrorist networks.

"Containment is not possible when unbalanced dictators with weapons of mass destruction can deliver those weapons on missiles, or secretly provide them to their terrorist allies," Cheney said.

Let's replay that last bit: Containment is not possible when unbalanced dictators with weapons of mass destruction can deliver those weapons on missiles.

How many unintentionally self-referential statements do Bush and Cheney have to make before the American people start getting more frightened of their own leaders than of foreign aggression? These guys scare the spit out of me, becasue they're only going to accrue more power, repeal more civil rights, and make the rest of the world hate us even more. And they'll do it all in the name of what's best for us.