dagblog - Comments for "Preserve, Protect and Posture"

double post by accident

Barth — Sun, 08 May 2011 12:41:57 +0000

double post by accident

A photographer in the Sit.

Verified Atheist — Sun, 08 May 2011 12:31:04 +0000

A photographer in the Sit. Room?

Let's be clear hear. It's not a photographer. It's the White House photographer, who presumably has the appropriate security clearance and wasn't going to rush to get a scoop.

It's not the photographs at

Barth — Sun, 08 May 2011 12:24:25 +0000

In reply to I did some digging.

It's not the photographs at issue. It is what they are doing in the photographs that is significant. The WH photographer. Peter Souza, has been given extraordinary access throughout this presidency for historical purposes: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/11/07/sunday/main7031588.shtml

I did some digging.

kyle flynn — Sun, 08 May 2011 05:37:24 +0000

In reply to I'd love to know who took

I did some digging. Interesting. The "photo" of Bush is a still of the video shot the morning of 9/11. It's cropped, eliminating the teacher, students and the surrounding classroom. The "9:05" time signature was added, near as I can tell, by Michael Moore, who used the footage for his movie Fahrenheit 9/11. The photo of Obama in the situation room is also cropped. The full fame includes Biden seated in front of Obama. It was taken by the Chief White House Photagrapher last Sunday. Ken Johnson of the NYT had this to say about it:

Had President Obama decided to release pictures of Bin Laden dead, maybe this ambiguous image would not have become as iconic as it did, for it falls short of what photography, at its best, historically has been thought to do: present the truth.

Yet that is what makes it so riveting, especially given the changing official narratives of the raid. It is a strangely enigmatic coda to the hunt for Bin Laden. And it would be hard to think of a more telling image of the elusiveness of truth in a democracy’s fraught struggle with terror.

Both images, as you present them, seem political to me. I guess we all see what we see. But c'mon. A photographer in the Sit. Room?

I'd love to know who took

kyle flynn — Sun, 08 May 2011 03:56:19 +0000

In reply to Preserve, Protect and Posture

I'd love to know who took each photo and what was originally done with them.

O'Donnell did fine. She

Barth — Sun, 08 May 2011 03:34:04 +0000

In reply to It really is amazing. Every

O'Donnell did fine. She looked to be a fool yet again whike trying to take credit for something.

The pictures represent two

Barth — Sun, 08 May 2011 03:32:00 +0000

In reply to I'm not sure what you think

The pictures represent two ways in which intelligence can be used. One is to consider these warnings an annoyance in a what does it have to do with me. I am doing political stuff'; if there is a problem, deal with it, but don't bother me with that crap.

The other is to do what a president should do. Gather the information, get recommendations as to what could be done, and then figure out what to do. It might be right and it might be wrong, but the decision has to be made.

No. The President did not say he did not need a briefing. He had many. The last one gave him the available options. He took sixteen hours to think about it. He did not do the politicaly easy thing: bomb the place, claim that you probably got him, or perhaps wonder if you did, as well as a few civilians and such. He agreed to take the riskier, but better course of action. Had it failed, his presidency might well have been irreparably damaged, and worse: US military might have been killed or worse.

There was no better than a 60 per cent chance the guy would be there, but he was. The plan might not have worked; but it did.

There may have been more that could have been done during the faux millenium, but the high alerts within the government, including the White House, may be what caused a customs agent to do what she did and to stop the plan to bomb LAX.

There may have been more that could have been done between August, 2001 and Spetember 11. But the President ignored the threat, told the CIA briefer to get lost, and went off to read to schoolchildren.

Yeh, that's what the photos show.

It really is amazing. Every

kgb999 — Sat, 07 May 2011 23:57:08 +0000

In reply to Yes we did.And I had to

It really is amazing. Every time they are discredited once again, some moron gives the crew a platform to start the whole cycle of bullshit over again.

Gee, thanks O'Donnell.

I'm not sure what you think

kgb999 — Sat, 07 May 2011 23:49:52 +0000

In reply to Preserve, Protect and Posture

I'm not sure what you think those pictures say. Obama didn't prevent 9/11. Nor has Obama faced a 9/11.

I think your best point was that the presidency has become a platform to campaign for reelection. With a manly manly and a "I don't need no briefing - Let's Roll It's a go!"

Some days Democrats are so pathetically Republican.

Thanks for the (painful)

CVille Dem — Sat, 07 May 2011 22:54:43 +0000

In reply to Preserve, Protect and Posture

Thanks for the (painful) summary, and I certainly agree with your conclusion.

I have never gotten a decent explanation as to why Bush could just sit there...

-- not responding to an attack on our country

-- not being immediately removed to a safe location since our country was under attack

-- and later that night (according to Laura) -- laugh about having to go up and down stairs depending on the threat level. Was anyone else laughing that night -- except Bin Laden?