tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post5092721737106545270..comments2023-04-01T03:38:40.001-07:00Comments on The Other Two-Fifths: Two thought-provoking 9/11 itemsProfGeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-29843645835114776552010-09-12T14:12:21.456-07:002010-09-12T14:12:21.456-07:00IMO both the Ed Morrissey article at Hot Air, and ...IMO both the Ed Morrissey article at Hot Air, and the New Republic article from which he draws, fail to counter Zakaria's points <b>as he stated them.</b> (CNN headlines may have distracted them.)<br /><br />For example, the fact that France and Great Britain responded in certain ways based on their distinct national cultures and needs, and that we have not completely followed in their footsteps regarding surveillance measures, does not disprove Zakaria's points.<br /><br />Zakaria meant "overreact" in two specific senses. Here's what he said (emphasis added):<br /><br />Zakaria: ...We didn't spend a lot of time in the year after 9/11 -- once we had taken it on, once we had started chasing these people around the world, measures which I strongly supported then and still strongly support -- whether that had been effective and whether we had broken up the organization and made it far more difficult for them to operate. And therefore, what was the real nature of the threat going forward?<br /><br /><b>I think it's clear that al Qaeda is a much-diminished force. It has the power to inspire a series of local organizations around the world, but it has very little power to direct these high-profile terrorist attacks itself.</b> The reaction to my point that al Qaeda is weaker than we think has surprised me only because I've made this point since 2004, and I've made it repeatedly...<br /><br />The second sense in which I mean it is I do think <b>there is a tendency within the American appropriations system for projects to become eternal and eternally expanding and this has clearly become true of homeland security.</b> Nobody wants to deny the request for more security, more measures, more procedures, all of which come with more budgets, more bureaucrats ...<br /><br />CNN: So what should be done now?<br /><br />Zakaria: This would be the right time for us to take a look and ask ourselves, in order to combat the actual threat that al Qaeda poses, which is real but which is limited in some senses -- what kind of intelligence apparatus do we need, what kind of homeland security apparatus do we need and<b> how much can we do in terms in reallocating, reorganizing and reinventing these national security agencies rather than constantly piling up layer upon layer.</b>ProfGeohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01046750645086625075noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3472621123635511253.post-74245628641881517812010-09-12T12:08:02.957-07:002010-09-12T12:08:02.957-07:00I find this counter to Zakaria, appropriate and be...I find this counter to Zakaria, appropriate and better researched.<br /><br />http://hotair.com/archives/2010/09/11/did-americans-overreact-to-911/Cobbhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14540420277243106564noreply@blogger.com