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Let's Roll
New York Times ^ | Wednesday, January 2, 2002 | By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN [With a rejoinder by "JohnHuang2"]

Posted on 01/02/2002 9:31:42 AM PST by JohnHuang2

January 2, 2002

Let's Roll

By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN

All hail to President Bush for how he has conducted the war against Osama bin Laden. Mr. Bush has emerged a far better commander in chief than anyone predicted. In the war on terrorism he has shown steely resolve, imagination, leadership and creativity. Thank you Mr. Bush.

And now, I wish Al Gore were president.

Why? Quite simply because instead of showing resolve, imagination, leadership and creativity on the domestic front, Mr. Bush has done just the opposite. He has tried to use the tremendous upsurge in patriotism, bipartisanship and volunteerism triggered by the tragedy of Sept. 11 to drive a narrow, right-wing agenda from Sept. 10 into a Sept. 12 world. It's wrong. It won't work. It sells the country short and it will ultimately sell the Bush presidency short.

I have no problem with nation-building in Afghanistan, but what I'm really interested in is nation-building in America — using the power of Sept. 11 to make our country stronger, safer and a better global citizen in the world of Sept. 12, beginning with how we use energy.

But so far, all that's happening is that we've made the world safer for Saudi Arabia and OPEC to raise oil prices again. In case you missed it, last Friday the Saudi-led cartel cut production by 6.5 percent to boost oil prices, while the world is struggling to get out of a recession induced in part by the terrorism of Osama bin Laden and 15 Saudi hijackers.

Frankly, the thought that U.S. taxpayers, who have had to bail out the airline industry (which was devastated by Sept. 11 and by higher gas prices) and to finance the $1 billion-a-month war against bin Laden, will now have to pay more for oil because the Middle East regimes we're protecting want to hike the price is an outrage.

You'd think maybe the king of Saudi Arabia would say: "America, we're as upset as you that Osama bin Laden and 15 Saudi youth were involved in the terrible attack on your shores. So we want to help America — the engine of the global economy — recover, as well as the developing world. As such, we're going keep oil prices extremely low for the next six months, then we'll slowly lift them back to the $24-$28 range. It will cost us, but that's our tax cut for the world."

Is that too much to ask? Well, it seems so — which leads me back to President Bush.

The most obvious bold national project that Mr. Bush could launch now — his version of the race to the moon — would be a program for energy independence, based on developing renewable resources, domestic production and energy efficiency. Not only would every school kid in America be excited by such a project, but it also would be Mr. Bush's equivalent of Richard Nixon going to China — the Texas oilman weaning America off of its dependence on Middle East oil. That would be a political coup!

It would also be Mr. Bush's best response to foreigners who are enraged by America's refusal to join the Kyoto treaty to stop global warming. Mr. Bush could say that by weaning America away from oil gluttony he would be doing more for the environment than Kyoto ever would, which would greatly improve America's standing as a global good citizen.

There are lots of ways Mr. Bush could go. "Today one out of every seven barrels of oil produced in the world is consumed on American highways," says the respected oil consultant Philip Verleger. "We could cut that by a third in five years if Washington were to offer tax incentives for manufacturers to produce more efficient vehicles and for consumers to buy them. Such tax cuts could be paid for with a higher gas tax, gradually phased in. Then we could replace all those American flag bumper stickers with ones that read: 'I cut my oil use by a third, how about you?' "

I don't want to be dependent on Mideast oil anymore. Countries in that region haven't had a good century in 700 years — and they're not going to soon. Oil is their curse, as well as ours. It's corrupted their rulers, enabled them to keep their women backward and out of the work force, and prevented them from developing innovative economies that make things instead of just take things from the ground. They have a lot of homework to do before they will be stable allies.

We will all benefit if they succeed, but for now we have to look after ourselves. So, Mr. Bush, "Let's roll." Ultimately, presidential greatness is measured by what you do at home. If this war on terrorism ends with nation-building only in Afghanistan and not in America, it will be no victory at all. 



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Thomas Friedman's 'Let's Roll': A Rejoinder

Just when you thought the left couldn't stoop any lower, along comes Mr. Thomas Friedman, the New York Times' "revered" house "oracle".

"Revered", that is, by the goofy gagas on the left.

With the President riding high in the polls, on the heels of his glistening achievements overseas, the liberals feel harried, frustrated -- besieged, even. Their discombobulation has grown so acute, even their rhetoric is larded with easily discernible discrepancies -- more than usual, that is. For one thing, Democrats have yet to settle upon a viable formula for dealing with a GOP Presient far more skilled, far more shrewd and far more resourceful than they had reckon on. One minute they're ranting and raving, the next they meekly applaud with backhanded praise. The dichotomy eerily resembles Clinton's infamous compartmentalization pathology.

Indeed, Mr. Friedman's latest harangue is a perfect illustration of this gnawing miasma of contradictions.

To Friedman's credit, however, his jeremiads are engaging in one sense: As a study on the convolution of logic by liberals. "Let's Roll" is no exception. The twists, twirls and spin are enough to leave the reader woozy.

With one breath, he extols the Commander-in-Chief for his conduct of the war in Afghanistan; in the next breath, he fiercely denounces the President. His crime? Supposedly exploiting the sweeping patriotism and national unity in the wake of September 11 for sinister purposes, ergo, "to drive a narrow, right wing [pre-Sept. 11] agenda". In other words, Bush is 'creative', 'imaginative' and 'resolute' only when he pushes an agenda the sage Mr. Friedman can agree with.

If this isn't symptomatic of Friedman's colossal ego -- his penchant for swanking flamboyantly his inexhaustible supply of pompous conceit -- I don't know what is.

Moreover, any doubt Mr. Friedman hails from the Hezbollah wing of the Democrat resistance, his babbling screed should lay them to rest. His checklist of grievances reads like a Terry McAuliff memo to redmeat combatants.

His silly complaints don't square with the facts. Not one of them.

The notion that Bush has finagled September 11 to further what Friedman disparages as a "right wing" agenda is laughable, utterly preposterous. Was Mr. Friedman comatose these past four months? That's the question on the minds of his readers.

The record speaks for itself. In case you missed it, Mr. Friedman, this President has been exemplary, a quintessential, classic role model for how a leader leads, even amid the gravest of national traumas. Nothing, absolutely nothing, could faintly prepare any human leader for the horrors -- the utter, bloodcurdling grotesquery -- of September 11. But throughout this ordeal, this President conducted himself, both at home and abroad, with vision, with clarity and purpose, rallying a nation to war and mustering a global coalition in record time. Again and again, this President has smoked his nagging critics.

Little mystery why Bush continues to benefit from overwhelming public support. It no longer suffices to pooh-pooh his polls as merely a 'rallying-around-the-flag' dynamic from September 11. That may have been true the first month. But not now: Current polls are an accurate assessment of performance. Whether Friedman and his ilk can bring themselves to admit it or not is irrelevant.

Oh, but how easy it is for hacks like Friedman to sling arrows from the peanut gallery.

Mr. Friedman urges the President to embark on a "bold national project", a "program for energy independence". There is something absurdly fatuous about a sappy simpleton, clearly out of his league, lecturing a seasoned Harvard MBA with a bailiwick in energy about, er, energy. Then again, when has ignorance ever stood in the way of sneering, snobby pundits?

And never mind the loony irony of a liberal exhorting a Republican to be creative even as he jostles for yet another tax-and-spend boondoggle.

Stick with your day job, Mr. Friedman.

Not a hint in this piece about opening up ANWR to exploration, nor the benefits of greater off-shore oil drilling. Reduce dependence on mideast oil, eh? Well, last time I checked, Russia -- a prodigious oil producer -- was definitely not in the mideast. That's a big part of Bush's diplomatic rapprochement with president Vladimir Putin. Or does Friedman believe Russia's an arab country?

Raise CAFE standards, Mr Friedman? Well, have you given the slightest thought about the consequences -- the costs in terms of human lives (the rise in highway injuries and deaths) as motorists are forced to switch to smaller, lighter (read: less safer) vehicles? Of course not. Why should a limousine liberal vex over something as niggling as peasants in flyover country?

Speaking of consequences, what of the implementation costs, as tallied in vanishing jobs and spiraling energy prices, of Friedman's cherished Kyoto treaty? No thought to that either, apparently.

So let's recap: Friedman grouses over high gas prices and too much dependence on mideast oil, yet he yearns for Gore to be president. Yep, the same Gore under whose administration gas prices soared -- as well as dependency on foreign oil. Go figure.

Yet, the greatest crime in this piece has nothing to do with errors of fact, nor with Mr. Friedman's silly partisanship. It's moral turpitude: To wit, Thomas Friedman shamelessly bastardizes the rousing words of a genuine American hero -- Todd Beamer of flight #93. Thanks to the passenger revolt he led, our nation's capital was spared even greater death and destruction.

Memo to Mr. Friedman: You owe Todd Beamer's widow a public apology, sir.

My two cents...
"JohnHuang2"

Quote of the Day by Gordian Blade


1 posted on 01/02/2002 9:31:44 AM PST by JohnHuang2
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To: JohnHuang2
Great rejoinder, John. Methinks Messr. Friedman's pinko panties are in a very tight bunch right now, along with most of the left and Rats. This is good, IMHO, as the "neglect of domestic issues" is falling on deaf ears, as well as being untrue. Consumer confidence is up, gas prices are down and the Clinton Administration is rightfully being called to task for 9-11.

Sorry Mr. Friedman, the time you spent penning this pap was wasted. Yes, let's roll, but not in the direction you want...

2 posted on 01/02/2002 9:39:02 AM PST by eureka!
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To: JohnHuang2
Very well said, Sir.
I'll nominate your piece for essay of the month...!
3 posted on 01/02/2002 9:40:48 AM PST by HiJinx
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To: JohnHuang2
New York Times is just like CNN and hires hacks who just blather on with their liberal crap! I think Bush has a good handle on things with his relations to both Russia and MExico...you can bet he is trying to convince President Fox to build those oil refineries quickly!
4 posted on 01/02/2002 9:42:25 AM PST by princess leah
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To: HiJinx
Everyday, I give thanks that Algore is not in the White House.
5 posted on 01/02/2002 9:44:24 AM PST by Eric in the Ozarks
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To: JohnHuang2
I like reading Peggy Noonan, and even that "personally" confused woman, Camille Pagilla. Plus a few others that can mash a word or two together without making a mess. A good writer puts something together so well that every sentence is tasty. You did that today with "A Rejoinder".

Mmm, mmm, good. Please ping me the next time you have something new to chew on!

6 posted on 01/02/2002 9:47:28 AM PST by isthisnickcool
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To: JohnHuang2
I wouldn't worry about OPEC cutting production - according to GW's campaign rhetoric, he just going to get on the phone and tell OPEC to "open those spigots" and we'll have all the oil we need. (sarcasm)

By the way, Russia agreed to cut oil production along with other non-OPEC nations.

7 posted on 01/02/2002 9:48:45 AM PST by 74dodgedart
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To: JohnHuang2
Friedman probably doesn't drive or even have a car. Gas prices are the lowest they've been since I can remember.

We do need to drill in Alaska and work with Mexico to get more oil.

8 posted on 01/02/2002 9:49:05 AM PST by tallhappy
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To: eureka!
Thanks, my friend =^)

Methinks Messr. Friedman's pinko panties are in a very tight bunch right now, along with most of the left and Rats.

hehehehe! Couldn't have said it better.

Consumer confidence is up, gas prices are down and the Clinton Administration is rightfully being called to task for 9-11.

Exactly, and as Reagan would say, ya ain't seen nothing yet ;^)

BTW, are you experiencing slow internet connection? It's slowed to a crawl here....:^(

9 posted on 01/02/2002 9:53:21 AM PST by JohnHuang2
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To: HiJinx
Thanks you, thank you =^)
10 posted on 01/02/2002 9:53:59 AM PST by JohnHuang2
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To: princess leah
New York Times is just like CNN and hires hacks who just blather on with their liberal crap!

Good reason why their ratings are in a death spiral, too.

Viva FOXNEWS!

11 posted on 01/02/2002 9:55:09 AM PST by JohnHuang2
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To: JohnHuang2
How about Friedman writing an editorial on the obstructionist tactics of Tom Dash-hole and his merry band of Rats?
12 posted on 01/02/2002 9:56:05 AM PST by AlaskaErik
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To: JohnHuang2
Great response, John, absolutely great!
One thing Friedman said must not go unchallenged:
"...the world is struggling to get out of a recession induced in part by the terrorism of Osama bin Laden and 15 Saudi hijackers."

Bullsh*t!

Your fearless leader, Mr. Friedman, the one and only Clintoon, bears sole responsibility for the current state of our economy!

13 posted on 01/02/2002 9:56:38 AM PST by Redbob
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To: JohnHuang2
"BTW, are you experiencing slow internet connection? It's slowed to a crawl here....:^(

Yes I am. Though it seems to kind of come and go. Sometimes quick response, sometimes slowwwwww. And I have DSL....

14 posted on 01/02/2002 9:58:13 AM PST by eureka!
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To: isthisnickcool
I like reading Peggy Noonan

I absolutely adore her. IMHO, she's the finest writer in the business. Her writings are exquisite works of art.

You did that today with "A Rejoinder".

Thank you, my friend =^)

Please ping me the next time you have something new to chew on!

I sure will.

15 posted on 01/02/2002 9:58:22 AM PST by JohnHuang2
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To: JohnHuang2
would be a program for energy independence, based on developing renewable resources, domestic production and energy efficiency

Here, here! I say, in the midst of a recession, pour as much money into difficult and far-flung research as possible!

16 posted on 01/02/2002 9:58:47 AM PST by Pistias
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To: JohnHuang2
Great rebuttal...was this sent to the NYT, if not it should be.
17 posted on 01/02/2002 9:58:51 AM PST by mystery-ak
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To: JohnHuang2
"We could cut that by a third in five years if Washington were to offer tax incentives for manufacturers to produce more efficient vehicles and for consumers to buy them.

We tried to get a tax cut through the Democratically controlled Senate. It failed.

Such tax cuts could be paid for with a higher gas tax, gradually phased in.

Sure, then the 99 percent of Americans who choose not to purchase a $35,000 hybrid tin can will be subsidizing the liberals who do.

Then we could replace all those American flag bumper stickers with ones that read: 'I cut my oil use by a third, how about you?' "

Now THAT will be effective, won't it? Last I checked, those 'My Child Is Student of the Month' bumper stickers have not raised the IQ of America's school children.

18 posted on 01/02/2002 9:59:32 AM PST by 11th Earl of Mar
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To: eureka!
And I have DSL....

Ditto, and I've been double-posting with four minute delays!

19 posted on 01/02/2002 9:59:37 AM PST by Pistias
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To: JohnHuang2
Great job, as usual, John.
20 posted on 01/02/2002 10:00:33 AM PST by Aeronaut
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