Oh PUHLEEZE. Can't you smell a setup when it's right under your nose?
DHS needed a boost, this is it.
Sheesh.
Posted by marblex at October 11, 2005 08:57 AM...Iraqi informant that gave the information to our military now admits it was a hoax.
I wonder if they tortured him to get that info?
Maybe they'll torture him now to find out why he lied before?
Posted by snark at October 11, 2005 08:59 AMIt doesn't have to be al Qaeda toying with us. The average Iraqi hates our guts.
Not only did DHS need a boost, Bush was on TV just a day before talking about how much a threat there was. The "alert" was the "proof" taht we are still in danger. The administration loves the smell of fear in the morning
Posted by the professor at October 11, 2005 09:11 AMThe story is still on CNN's front page. Maybe they pulled it from the World page?
Posted by John at October 11, 2005 09:22 AMOn the same CNN page: "HHS Chief: Bird flu pandemic very high". Who knows when to believe these jokers and when not to?
Posted by Cookie Monster at October 11, 2005 09:24 AMBut if there was an attack, you'd all be complaining that Bush knew about it in advance and didn't do anything.
You folks are really good at predicting the past. Say, now that the series is over, who do you think will win between the Angels-Yankees? LOL.
I'm glad the Feds are taking threats seriously.
I'm glad we're working on a bird flu answer before it hits us.
JMHO.
Posted by muckdog at October 11, 2005 09:41 AMIt wasn't pulled off the website, it was moved from the World News page to the National news.
Posted by Litz at October 11, 2005 09:45 AMwhen will people wake up and realize that they're being led around by their noses?...this administration rules the masses with fear and religion.... when people start thinking for themselves and questioning this sorry excuse of a government maybe we will learn some truth. Can you imagine the WTC imploding from below the ground..... think about it
Posted by farmer dave at October 11, 2005 09:51 AMmuckdog, that's my point exactly. Bush is crying wolf so often, if and when a real attack comes, we will be unprepared. It was totally irresponsible for Bush to release the list of ten alleged foiled attacks - that can only help our enemies. We need a leader we can trust to make the right judgements for us.
Posted by Cookie Monster at October 11, 2005 10:00 AMConsidering that Bush didn't publicize the threat, perhaps we should take a look at the local politicians who did. The day Mayor Bloomberg announced the threat, there was a mayoral debate going on, a debate that Bloomberg did not attend in Harlem. So his Democratic opponent was able to take free potshots all night. The police commissioner in NYC has announced he will not stay if Bloomberg leaves, so he had incentives as well.
Posted by KevinNYC at October 11, 2005 10:06 AMActually, the feds were backing off the 'threat' from the get-go. It was NY state officials that were making a big deal about it. The feds kept saying it wasn't credible.
Posted by Funkmaster at October 11, 2005 10:07 AMBush was on TV just a day before talking about how much a threat there was.
who cares about New York? not ray kelly. why don't you retire now, you piece of shit?
Posted by benjoya at October 11, 2005 10:19 AMCookie Monster -
I disagree with your premise: ChimpCo hasn't really issued any kind of alert since around November 1, 2004.
I believe Nostradamus (or perhaps it was Karl The Magnificent?) predicted a flurry of terror alert activity starting in Spring, 2006, and ending around November 7, 2006, at 8 PM PST.
Oh, and muckdog? Re: "But if there was an attack, you'd all be complaining that Bush knew about it in advance and didn't do anything." We've already been there. But, I guess we have no reason to complain, since the August 6, 2001 PDB was not titled "Bin Laden Determined to Strike in US at 8:46:40 AM on September 11, 2001, using American Airlines Flight 11 to Fly into the North Tower of the World Trade Center in lower Manhattan, New York City". I mean, if THAT had been the title, then even the NY Times might have considered assigning responsibility (but not blame, of course) to ChimpCo for that asleep-at-the-wheel, "Ah'm-on-vacation-clearin'-brush-so-don't-disturb-me", massive @#$%^&-up. Thankfully, "no one" outside of those commie-lovin' Bush-haters, or people who read that pinko Tom Clancy "could have predicted" that the levee might collapse.
Here's a quarter, please use it to go buy yourself a clue.
who knows why the threat was held until after a string of bad political news came out last week?
Seems pretty obvious to me they held it for Shrub's big speech.
Posted by at October 11, 2005 10:49 AMCookie, are you suggesting that Bush needs a time machine to know which terrorist threats will actually be committed versus the ones that won't, and then go back in time so that he can warn folks? Just trying to understand your position.
SFAW, you should call late night radio's Coast to Coast with your PDB stuff. I think it's all hogwash, but I'm sure Coast to Coast listeners would agree with you, and potentially add in some comments about fallen angels and spacecraft.
Posted by muckdog at October 11, 2005 10:55 AMPerhaps if the Bush administration was more competent, they could discern when they have a reliable source vs. when they have an unreliable source. But this is the administration who believes that they can get good information from accused terrorists by torture.
Posted by ann at October 11, 2005 10:59 AMIs "hoax" the right word? The source had to have had a reason for giving the bum info other than a good laugh at our expense.
Posted by Hoyt Pollard at October 11, 2005 11:06 AMactually, my sentiment about kelly stands, but i meant it in response to this:
The police commissioner in NYC has announced he will not stay if Bloomberg leaves
Jeebus Muck, get a clue dude.
If I knew what tomorrows winning lotto numbers were today I'd win the damn thing too. But I don't, alas.
Clearly the issue isn't but what if they did. It's can we believe these people.
And clearly we can't. How many times do you have to be lied to by somebody before you figure it out?
20?
30?
100?
I usually find somebody to be completely unreliable after the second lie, and act accordingly. After a third chance, they're history.
Every god damned time, they have lied. Every time. And you still want to make these lame ass defenses? You really are amazing.
Posted by Duckman GR at October 11, 2005 11:07 AMDuckman, I'm not sure if you've been brainwashed or are just there are few cards missin' from your deck. You'd have to prove somebody lied. Nobody here has done that.
Speculation won't hold up in court, son.
Posted by muckdog at October 11, 2005 11:16 AMSorry boys, you're the ones that need to do the provin here.
There simply isn't time nor space to list all the lies. Suffice it to say that, as an example, when bush said that Gov Blanco hadn't declared a state of emergency for New Orleans and Louisiana, that was a lie. And ignorance is no excuse, that's his job. And that's just one. WMD's, no one could imagine airplanes flying into buildings, we know where they are east west south and north and so on, all lies. Terror alerts? Lies. rove had nothing to do with Plame? Lie.
And it goes on and on.
Posted by Duckman GR at October 11, 2005 11:31 AMBlanco has one extra letter on her name. LOL. Talk about your poster child for the "deer caught in the headlights" look. Classic.
Sorry, we don't have to prove a negative, duckie. You have to prove he lied, and you haven't.
Speculation is not proof. Except on late night's Coast to Coast.
Posted by muckdog at October 11, 2005 11:35 AMSorry, we don't have to prove a negative, duckie. You have to prove he lied, and you haven't.
Yet Saddam Hussein was expected to prove a negative.
Oh no....that's right....he wasn't expected to prove he had no WMD because that would have ruined all Georgie's fun. Ya' know. War Preznit and all that.
Posted by snark at October 11, 2005 11:46 AMSpeculation is not proof.
That's my motto from now on!
Posted by Colin Powell at October 11, 2005 11:47 AMSo that's your new argument for everything, mucky? Twirl your finger next to your ear and make googly noises? Somehow, I expected better of you. Don't know why, but I did.
Posted by iamcoyote at October 11, 2005 12:00 PMwhen you talk about saddam and osama, there's no difference.
Posted by dubya at October 11, 2005 12:20 PMBlanco has one extra letter on her name. LOL. Talk about your poster child for the "deer caught in the headlights" look. Classic.
Whew! I'm glad to know all those cracks people have been making about dubya's goofy looks all these years have been legit.
Thanks for clearing that up muckdog.
Posted by Tim at October 11, 2005 12:22 PMA secret informant inside the White House (okay, inside the preznit's underwear drawer) has some explosive information!!!
It seems that Osama bin Forgotten (posing as a laundry worker) has secretly replaced preznit bunnypants tubesock codpiece with a tubesock codpiece soaked in nitroglycerin, and they plan to detonate it the next time preznit bunnypants goes on TV!!!
Posted by garter belt at October 11, 2005 12:30 PMThe dead giveaway that this was a hoax was that the supposed attack was to occur on Sunday. Who in fuck's name would attack the NYC subway on a Sunday?
Posted by anon at October 11, 2005 12:48 PMThis sounds a lot like the first story in Sartes the Wall, in which the main character, imprisoned tortured and up for execution by the Nazi's before WWII, the character has a existential moment and decides to play a joke on his captures. Seems America is playing the role of the Nazis in this retelling.
Posted by Trevor at October 11, 2005 12:51 PMI am in the CNN video clip of the story. I was interviewed on saturday, basically saying that there are terror threats every other week and I am not going to let that stop me from riding the train. I was surprised they used the clip, I figured they wanted some terrified civilian forced to ride the train even though they were living in fear.
Posted by Matt at October 11, 2005 01:19 PMRead this flashback to LGF making fun of those who believed facts should have been checked:
Progressive Community Laughs at Terror Threat
Posted by Mike at October 11, 2005 01:32 PMSo you don't have any proof either, Coyote? Thought not.
Posted by muckdog at October 11, 2005 02:13 PMProof of what, mucky? That you're whack? How 'bout your constant pushing of Coast to Coast. Maybe you believe in Bigfoot, but we're all about the facts, here.
Posted by iamcoyote at October 11, 2005 02:59 PMCaught your typo there, Coyote. You probably meant to say "fax." Because folks here seem to avoid facts like they were the avian flu.
Posted by muckdog at October 11, 2005 03:15 PMYes, what's this we discover today there were no "credible" threats! Of course the ......operative word being credible...ya see chimpster and the intelligence community lost all credibility when they fixe...errr fucked up the intelligence dragging us into Iraq. Plus even when they had the intelligence community screaming about valid threats with their hair of fire with PDB's stating "bin laden determined to strike in the US" what good did it do? The Shrubster was too busy on vacation cutting brush and Condi (the NSA who really didn't even know what al qaeda was) and the gang...they ignored it anyway because well the PDB didn't have the exact day, time, and flight numbers of the planes attatched to it so how could we "ever have imagined airplanes to be used as missiles and crashed into buildings".
The boy who cried wolf and didn't even when there really was one has no credibility unless that is you're a deluded cult apologist.
"fax"? or did you mean "faux"? You've been a little testy today, muck. Did you stay up past your bedtime last night listening to Coast to Coast?
Posted by dorita at October 11, 2005 04:16 PMmuckdog -
It appears that your keyboard has two extra buttons that the rest of us don't, and which you use liberally. (Sorry, I know you hates that word). Specifically, the "Content-Free" button, and the "MTCU" (a/k/a the "Make the Comment Unintelligible" button).
But thanks for playing!
Posted by SFAW at October 11, 2005 04:55 PMR - O - V - E .
Posted by MattJ at October 11, 2005 04:56 PMThe story hasn't been removed from CNN -- it's just been moved. Here's the URL
http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/10/11/nyc.scare/index.html
Posted by Tab at October 11, 2005 05:12 PM'm glad the Feds are taking threats seriously. I'm glad we're working on a bird flu answer before it hits us.Posted by muckdog
The feds didn't take it seriously. They said it was weak as it was. As for the bird flu, the US at the bottom of the list for readiness of industrialized countries? Why is the US preparing to have supplies for 2% of the population when Europe varies from 20%-40%? Most estimates believe that up to 25% of the population could be hit by the virus, so why is Team Bush so far behind? Why does the GOP hate America?
This had everything to do with the debate at the Apollo that night. Bloomberg skipped it, Ferrer was making an issue of it. The terrorist threat knocked it from the news cycle. Not too hard to see.
Posted by Max in New York. at October 11, 2005 09:50 PMThe important thing is having vaccine for the right 2% of the population. Wink, wink.
Posted by Kip W at October 12, 2005 09:49 AM