That Annoying Issue of "Homeland Security"

In September of 2005, the liberal political establishment successfully laid the Hurricane Katrina disaster at the feet of then President George W. Bush, in what was perhaps the greatest propaganda "sleight of hand" in modern history. Mired in corruption as a result of a near monopoly of Democrat political power, the City of New Orleans, and in fact the entire State of Louisiana, was woefully unprepared for the magnitude of the storm that hit it.

Yet in its wake, the bumbling of race-obsessed Mayor Ray Nagin and the indecisiveness of Governor Kathleen Blanco, both Democrats and clearly the greatest contributors to the botched evacuation and resulting losses of life and property, were somehow given a "pass." In their stead, the political left cried out with a monolithic voice to condemn the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), its chairman Mike Brown, and of course the president who appointed him, George W. Bush.

Initially, the strident "outrage" was intended to distract America from the culpability held by the Democrats, since the region had been under their dominion for decades, and the abominable response to Katrina was directly tied to the universal dysfunction of bloated and corrupt state and local bureaucracies. Yet the success of their diversionary ploy so vastly exceeded early expectations, that its ringleaders seized the opportunity to develop it into a major campaign issue for the next year's elections.

It mattered not that the real responsibility should have fallen to those who accepted and squandered vast amounts of money expressly intended to shore up the dikes, or institute other measures to minimize destruction from the inevitable storm. George Bush did it all, no doubt motivated by his animus towards the minority population of New Orleans. End of story.

Indeed, had those countless lives been endangered and ultimately lost as a result of Bush Administration indifference, such condemnation would certainly have been appropriate. Now, in the aftermath of a near miss from yet another Islamic terrorist, the blatant incompetence and callous indifference of the Obama White House is not creating nearly the stir that was generated by the network anchors following Katrina. Nevertheless, the evidence is glaring, and like the "Climate Gate" revelations of wholesale fraud from England's East Anglia Climate Research Unit, this story will not remain hushed forever.

Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano typifies the real interests and intentions of this administration. Ultimately, the safety of American and international travelers in our nation's airports is a major annoyance and distraction from the more important objectives of the liberal agenda. In its raw form, an event of this nature, despite nearly costing the lives of three hundred people, cannot be invoked as evidence of "global warming," the lack of equitable medical care for all, or as an excuse to raise taxes.

Napolitano, in her second response to the incident, which is admittedly a marked improvement from her initial reaction (asserting that the current airport security system had worked well), offered measures reminiscent of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius who directed Americans to sneeze into their sleeves as the proper fix for the impending global pandemic of swine flu. Napolitano is directing flight attendants to demand that all passengers keep their hands visible during the final hour of flight, thus forcing would-be terrorists to detonate their explosives and kill the passengers and flight crews further from their intended destination. We can all rest easy now.

Yet even this absurdity is not as appalling as the non-reaction from Barack Obama. He clearly did not want to be bothered with the whole affair, since every aspect of it screams in the face of his delusional appeasement agenda. Having groveled at the feet of every Middle-Eastern ruler willing to give him audience during the past year, Obama convinced himself and his acolytes that he was mending fences with that culture that had been devastated by an overly bellicose Bush White House.

Where the former president had exhibited arrogant resolve, Obama showed fawning and capitulation. Of course those brutish regimes would buy into Obama's narcissism and make nice in response to it.

Now, the word is out that al Qaeda has moved into Yemen and is fortifying there. Somehow, negotiations from a position of weakness and submissiveness do not seem to be winning America any new friends. It is as if the old saw about those people respecting strength is true after all, and as a result, the utopian dreams of international collegiality envisioned by Obama and his leftist cronies are dissipating. Forget the dangers posed to Americans by this situation however. It looks really bad in front of the cameras and will likely not generate any gains in approval polls.

After less than a year in office, the evidence of the real Barack Obama is undeniable. Here is a man who sat under, and absorbed the venom and bile of the "Reverend" Jeremiah Wright for more than two decades, fomenting such sentiments as expressed in his "bitter clingers" characterization of heartland America. Here is a man who shows no respect for this nation, its national symbols, its heritage, or its anthem. Yet he bows low to other national leaders, particularly from regressive regimes.

He does not believe in the concept of American exceptionalism, and has made it abundantly clear that he intends to wipe out every vestige of it. He does not regard those organizations throughout the world who express overt hostility to America, or those individuals in the country who are similarly motivated to commit the mass murder of Americans, as his real enemy. Such a characterization is reserved for members of the political right.

The pattern of escalating animosity and boldness from America's most virulent enemies, witnessed throughout the 1990s, is beginning to repeat itself. So too, but on a more disturbing scale, is the pattern of inaction from a leftist executive with more pressing priorities, such as the implementation of his Marxist agenda. If America and its government refuse to learn the lessons of September 11, 2001, namely that the bestial threat still exists and that only through greater force, abandoning the absurdities of "multiculturalism" and "political correctness," and maintaining the inherent instincts of the American people to fight for and preserve their country, can the threat be confronted and overcome. Otherwise, a repeat of the 9-11 attacks, perhaps on a far greater scale, is inevitable.