D’Souza: F.D.R. ‘Indirectly Responsible’ For September 11
D’Souza: F.D.R. ‘Indirectly Responsible’ For September 11
Prominent conservative intellectual Dinesh D’Souza has released a book titled “The Enemy at Home: The Cultural Left and Its Responsibility for 9/11.”
Last night on The Colbert Report, D’Souza repeated the right-wing attack that President Bill Clinton “did absolutely nothing” to fight global terrorists. Stephen Colbert jokingly asked, “Doesn’t some of it lie at FDR’s doorstep? Doesn’t things like Social Security and Medicare and LBJ’s Great Society, doesn’t some of that send the wrong message to our enemies?”
D’Souza answered, “Indirectly, yes,” explaining that “FDR gave away Eastern Europe through Yalta, and then the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, the Muslims had to fight back and that’s where bin Laden got his start.” Watch it:
D’Souza’s inflammatory book is being embraced by the conservative establishment. D’Souza currently has a feature interview in the National Review, and the Heritage Foundation will host a book event for him tomorrow.
PoliticsTV has video of the rest of Colbert’s show last night.
UPDATE: Steve Benen notes that Colbert was also able to get D’Souza to acknowledge that he agrees with some of Osama bin Laden’s critiques of the “liberal” elements of American culture.
Full transcript:
COLBERT: This book is a revelation to me. Okay, It’s called “The Enemy at Home: The Cultural Left and Its Responsibility for 9/11.” Okay, I’ve been trying to figure this one out for a while. Walk me through it. How did the liberals plan 9/11? Go.
D’SOUZA: Well, first of all, the liberals convinced Jimmy Carter to withdraw American support for a valuable ally, the Shah of Iran. The United States pulled the Persian rug out from under the Shah, and who did we get — Khomeini? In trying to get back at the bad guy, we got the worst guy.
COLBERT: But Reagan got back at those bastards by selling them those Hawk missiles in the 80s, right? He showed them a thing or two about American muscle by giving them some –
D’SOUZA: Well, he also sent some, he sent missiles to Khadafi, which put him out of the terrorism trade. Here’s the second point. In the 1990s, the radical Muslims launched a bunch of attacks — the Khobar Towers, the embassies, the USS Cole. President Clinton did absolutely nothing, and bin Laden said, you know what, the United States is a bunch of cowards. That’s why, he says, he was emboldened to strike on 9/11.
COLBERT: But is all the responsibility Carter and Clinton’s? Doesn’t some of it lie at FDR’s doorstep? Doesn’t things like Social Security and Medicare and LBJ’s Great Society, doesn’t some of that send the wrong message to our enemies, that America cares about domestic issues and not just about foreign policy?
D’SOUZA: Indirectly, yes, here’s why.
COLBERT: I can’t wait. Can I guess? We never got to see him standing up, and, therefore, America doesn’t stand up for its principles?
D’SOUZA: No, FDR gave away Eastern Europe through Yalta, and then the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, the Muslims had to fight back and that’s where bin Laden got his start.
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Why does D’Souza hate America?
January 17th, 2007 at 12:59 pmYes, I saw that last night. Colbert handed his ass to him quite nicely.
Thanks again, Stephen, for speaking truth to power.
I look forward to the drubbing you will be administering to Bill-O on Thursday. ^_^
January 17th, 2007 at 12:59 pmPerhaps D’Souza might want to comment on this comparison of bush and FDR:
“Bush and FDR on Sacrifice.”
January 17th, 2007 at 12:59 pmI watched - D’Souza couldn’t maintain his act for a minute - Colbert was agreeing with him, and STILL made a fool of him. Why did Ann Coulter ever bankroll this guy’s book deal? Very, very funny, to me, that Dinesh casts his lot with the “macaca” crowd. Anything to “curry” favor with the power elite, right buddy? Just like your white frat bros told you back at the teke house, right!?
January 17th, 2007 at 1:00 pmThis guy is a fraud and a phony historian! His book is 100% fiction!
January 17th, 2007 at 1:01 pmI protest your not putting “intellectual” in quotes as no real intellectual would spout such garbage.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:04 pmSo do I, Tripmaster.
They’re still reeling from him appearing a year ago at the WH Press Corps gig. O’Lielly’s got a really big ass, though. Colbert will have to do some heavy lifting.
Anyway, this little fairy is going to expect us to swallow this load of crap?
January 17th, 2007 at 1:04 pmI could infer that J. Edgar Hoover is responsible for 1 million people in jail because of the FBI’s support for his ‘Reefer Madness’ exploits, but that wouldn’t be true, would it?Oh wait, in that case it would, but I’m just sayin…
COLBERT: But Reagan got back at those bastards by selling them those Hawk missiles in the 80s, right? He showed them a thing or two about American muscle by giving them some –
D’SOUZA: Well, he also sent some, he sent missiles to Khadafi, which put him out of the terrorism trade.
Oh, did Reagan also sell weapons to Khadafi?
Just like a wingnut to overlook selling weapons to the same terrorists who held Americans hostage to make a bogus point about Kadaffy the cross-dresser!
January 17th, 2007 at 1:05 pmNevermind the direct links between Donald Rumsfeld and Saddam Hussein in the 1980’s. Let’s talk about an absurdly tenuous link. The problem is that the right wing does not see Colbert’s comments as satire.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:09 pmLets play the Neocon game.
WARNING: Do not try without Dramamine
Mother Teresa is “in part responsible” for the Holocaust.
Mother Teresa diverted vital food, attention, and resources from what could have been put into other critical defense spending. Mother Teresa met with Neville Chamberlain in 1938 and instead of poisoning him gave comfort to the enemy. Had Mother Teresa prevented the enabling Chamberlian and Hitler from meeting the Holocaust would NEVER have happened.
See how fun this “GAME” is?
January 17th, 2007 at 1:10 pmis this the guy that was boning coulter? ouch.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:11 pmAre there not any issues back home in India that he can tackle?
January 17th, 2007 at 1:12 pmD’Sousa is essentially right when he says that the enemy is emboldened when we don’t react aggressively to terrorist attacks.
Not sure about the FDR link though… seems a stretch…
Re. Colbert Report and The Daily Show: I think they are funny but I wonder about the damage to society when we begin to think it is hilarious (and even important) that we make fun of serious people trying to grapple with serious issues. In the end, we are left with “life is just one big joke”. I’m all for making fun of blowhards but I’d like to see Colbert knock down the Alec Baldwins and Barbra Streisands of the world, as often as he makes fun of people who are actually qualified to comment on the big issues of our day.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:14 pmEverytime one of these smarmy maggots spew their tripe they deserve a smackdown of truth.
Clinton did nothing? Oh REALLY?
Actually, it was the GOP congress who cut the military budget. Clinton was quite strong on defense:
CLINTON Developed the nation’s first anti-terrorism policy, and appointed first national coordinator of anti-terrorist efforts.
CLINTON Stopped cold the Al Qaeda millennium hijacking and bombing plots.
CLINTON Stopped cold the planned attack to kill the Pope
CLINTON Stopped cold the planned attack to blow up 12 U.S. jetliners simultaneously
CLINTON Stopped cold the planned attack to blow up UN Headquarters
CLINTON Stopped cold the planned attack to blow up FBI Headquarters
CLINTON Stopped cold the planned attack to blow up the Israeli Embassy in Washington
CLINTON Stopped cold the planned attack to blow up Boston airport
CLINTON Stopped cold the planned attack to blow up Lincoln and Holland Tunnels in NY
CLINTON Stopped cold the planned attack to blow up the George Washington Bridge
CLINTON Stopped cold the planned attack to blow up the US Embassy in Albania
– Tried to kill Osama bin Laden and disrupt Al Qaeda through preemptive strikes (efforts denounced by the G.O.P.).
– Brought perpetrators of first World Trade Center bombing and CIA killings to justice.
– Did not blame Bush I administration for first World Trade Center bombing even though it occurred 38 days after Bush left office. Instead, worked hard, even obsessively — and successfully — to stop future terrorist attacks.
–Named the Hart-Rudman commission to report on nature of terrorist threats and major steps to be taken to combat terrorism.
- Clinton sent legislation to Congress to TIGHTEN AIRPORT SECURITY. (Remember, this is before 9/11) The legislation was defeated by the Republicans because of opposition from the airlines.
- Clinton sent legislation to Congress to allow for BETTER TRACKING OF TERRORIST FUNDING. It was defeated by Republicans in the Senate because of opposition from banking interests.
- Clinton sent legislation to Congress to add tagents to explosives, to allow for BETTER TRACKING OF EXPLOSIVES USED BY TERRORISTS. It was defeated by the Republicans because of opposition from the NRA.
- Clinton increased the military budget by an average of 14 per cent, reversing the trend under Bush I.
- Clinton tripled the budget of the FBI for counterterrorism and doubled overall funding for counterterrorism
-Clinton detected and destroyed cells of Al Qaeda in over 20 countries
-Clinton created national stockpile of drugs and vaccines including 40 million doses of smallpox vaccine.
-Of Clinton’s efforts says Robert Oakley, Reagan Ambassador for Counterterrorism: “Overall, I give them very high marks” and “The only major criticism I have is the obsession with Osama”
-Paul Bremer, Bush’s appointed leader (Civilian Administrator) of Iraq disagreed slightly with Robert Oakley as he believed the Clinton Administration had “correctly focused on bin Laden.
-Barton Gellman in the Washington Post put it best, “By any measure available, Clinton left office having given greater priority to terrorism than any president before him” and was the “first administration to undertake a systematic anti-terrorist effort”
January 17th, 2007 at 1:15 pmHeh. Intellectual.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:15 pmDinesh D’Souza was not even born in this country!! Don’t the right-wing Nazis know they are outsourcing their stupidity to ugly furners?!? They better wake and smell the samozas!
January 17th, 2007 at 1:16 pmDinendash,
We also helped BinLaden get his start in the 80’s when we were so afraid of commies.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:18 pmUmmm, taken to its logical conclusion, if you believe God created man, then God is responsible for everything that happens.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:19 pmIf this trend continues the neocons will be putting forth the theory, under the guise of intelligent design, that the Virgin Mary was not as advertised and that DUHbya was indirectly the father of Jesus. Not such a leap as you would think given the other drivel they have concocted. From where do they dredge all these fools? They are certainly part of DUHbya’s 29%.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:19 pmIt’s hard to get more **cked up than that moron.
I can see him plying well on Little Green Footballs, but……..
January 17th, 2007 at 1:23 pmUh, Robert Gates gave Osama bin Laden his “startup” funds, not FDR.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:24 pmHe’s looking kinda brown there. He should prove to Glenn Beck that he’s not helping our enemies.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:26 pmD’Souza and Malkin are perched in a wingnut-welfare tree, throwing dirt-clods at liberals, and other dusky types, content as the two premere, token self-hating ethnic minorities of the “big tent” republican party. Their brittle prose is reminiscent of restroom scrawlings, and echoes many of the same themes.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:27 pmI don’t believe what this guy is saying. I also think it is pointless to try to blame one party or the other for where we are today. Although as Americans (or westerners) we believe that we have more control over our destiny than we really do, I feel that our situation has less to do with what we have done in the past, and more to do with the huge cultural divide that we experience between westerner societies and fundamentalist Islam. The longer we blame ourselves for these problems, the longer our focus will be diverted from the more important issues of resolving the conflict that exists between the two cultures.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:28 pm#18 Badmoodman, good point! :D
January 17th, 2007 at 1:30 pmD’Souza. Hmm
Me thinks I saw that name on a bottle of taquilla. I think this guy is full of the same.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:31 pmHey, let’s play the Conservative Leap of Logic Game!
According to D’Souza, terrorists hate the liberal way of life.
Conservatives also hate the liberal way of life.
Ergo…conservatives and terrorists are one and the same! See how easy that is?
January 17th, 2007 at 1:31 pmWow exterminate these propagandists.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:31 pmUh, Robert Gates gave Osama bin Laden his “startup†funds, not FDR.
Comment by Jake
The circle is complete, and the enemy is us.
Why don’t we dig up Reagan, and try to divine the Way Forward from his entrails? It couldn’t be any worse than the methods Bush has been using.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:32 pmFrom his interview in National Review online shows the true hypocricy and dangerous agenda this Straussian idealogues; FIND AN ALLIE IN ISLAMIC ZEALOTS to fight the “liberal agenda”
Lopez: Dinesh, you write that “American conservatives should join the Muslims and others in condemning the global moral degeneracy that is produced by liberal values.†Um, what would that coalition look like? Ahmadinejad and Pat Robertson? That’s not exactly a ticket anyone but David Duke will run to rally behind.
D’Souza: Already there have been working relationships between traditional Christians and traditional Muslims in the United Nations and some other international forums to block liberal efforts to declare abortion as a right under international law. In fact the U.N. Charter lists no such right, but this is part of the liberal campaign of cultural imperialism that is trying to force the values of the Western Left on the rest of the world. Planned Parenthood is distributing condoms to teenage girls on every continent. Leftist groups are suing to overturn restrictive abortion laws in South America. The Left is trying to force Turkey to liberalize its laws on homosexuality as a condition of joining the European Union. So here are opportunities for people who differ on theology but agree on morality to form an international coalition to block these bogus “rights†from being imposed on cultures that do not want them. I emphasize that I am not contesting any of the rights of classical liberalism. But this is a new liberalism that is trying to smuggle its own political preferences and call them “rights.†Come to think of it, hasn’t the Left been doing that here in this country for several decades now? Here are home we have to fight these bogus “rights†ourselves, but abroad we have the entire traditional world as an ally. Why wouldn’t we want that? This has nothing to do with putting Pat Robertson and Ahmadinejad together, and everything to do with forming coalitions among mainstream groups across international boundaries.
http://article.nationalreview.com/ ?q=ZmUzZTlmNGY3ZDM5Mjg2ZWQ3ZjVmMWVmNDhkOWU0NjU=
Google BBC movie (on the web) “Power of Nightmares” to show exactly how these Neocons are playing the American people.
http://video.google.com/ videoplay?docid=6508388099187397544&q=The+Power+of+Nightmares&hl=en
A MUST SEE - IT WILL FOREVER ENLIGHTEN YOU
January 17th, 2007 at 1:32 pmColbert’s handling of D’Souza last night was absolutely the most thorough slap down of a guest I’ve ever seen on any show or news program. Colbert was brilliant, making the holes in D’Souza’s “logic” larger than life, and making the guest look even more foolish than I thought possible.
This is a Colbert show that will stay on my DVD player for a while. Brilliant, and necessary.
Colbert keeps getting better and better. I can’t wait to see what he does with O’Reilley tomorrow (although the men might be slightly more coridal to each other, as they are both appearing on each other’s shows that day. If O’Reilley tapes his show earlier than the taping of TCR, then I expect Stephen will go after “papa bear” with the same attitude as D’Souza and Bush received. Oh, I want to see Stephen’s brass balls come out on Thursday.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:35 pmThis moron can go live in a conservative country. Heh.
What other developed nation is conservative, and is not a dictatorship?
January 17th, 2007 at 1:36 pmUS accused of raid on Sudan embassy
Sudan has summoned the senior US diplomat in Khartoum after it said American troops raided the Sudanese embassy in Baghdad, violating diplomatic conventions, a foreign ministry spokesman has said.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:37 pmIf this tool has ever had sex without being married, he has no credibility.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:37 pmDinesh D’Souza is a psuedo intellectual scam artist just trying to sell some books. He’d put out a book titled “Liberals think 2+2 = 5″ if his publisher thought it could make a profit.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:39 pmbarfly sez:
You just want an excuse to dig up and disembowel Reagan.
I want in.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:39 pmAny garbage to divert attention from the fact that BushCo is directly responsible for the occupation and deterioration of Iraq is OK by the neocons.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:40 pmSo conservatives and terrorists and religious zealots all have more in common with each other than liberal Americans and conservative Amercans do?
So conservatives and radical muslims do have lots in common. People have been saying it for a while now. This guy just admitted it.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:41 pmAnd while you’re at it. Maybe Ghandi had something to do with 9/11?
January 17th, 2007 at 1:43 pmwow
January 17th, 2007 at 1:45 pmD’Souza thinks the Shah was a swell guy.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:46 pmTells you a lot about his “intellectualism”.
Clearly, wearing tweed and sounding like a nerd doesn’t make you smart.
No. Bush,Cheney,Rumsfeld,Rice,Powell,Rove,Myers, ETC were responsible and created 9/11.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:47 pmAnd the republican right did nothing?????
Shame on them too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Oh wait, America is a democracy with two parties…….
Dinesh D’Souza is just another wacko historian bordering on conspiratorial jibberish.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:49 pmBeing a graduate of Dartmouth makes one an “intellectual?” By this standard condi is competent and cheny is a human being.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:49 pmI agree badmoodman (#18) - what’s genius about D’Souza’s point is that history is responsible for other history!
I mean, if there had been no Hundred Years’ War there would have been no Hitler! No Robin Hood, no Queen Elizabeth! No Crusades, no Space Program!
It’s absurd to try to draw direct parallels between events separated by many years and many other events. Colbert kind of pushed him into the FDR argument, but it was foolish none the less.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:53 pm#13 - Serious people? good lord. dinesh is a serious asshole.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:54 pmUgh - can you imagine if D’Souza impregnated Ann Coulter?
Talk about “Rosemary’s Baby”…
Of course, that assumes Ann Coulter is a woman - and if she’s not, then D’Souza is gay and enjoys the company of drag queens.
Which is fine, of course, - unless you’re a right-wing pundit who makes money spewing hatred about gay people.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:57 pm44 — Hey, I’m a Dartmouth grad and I’m definitely not an intellectual (as many on this site will attest)
January 17th, 2007 at 1:59 pmHey Nico! There’s a typo in the post:
C’mon, now … we all know there’s no such thing as a “conservative intellectual.”
:-)
January 17th, 2007 at 2:02 pmBWHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAAAAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!
Whatta maroon.
Seriously. Alexander the Great indirectly caused 9/11. He really stirred things up by invading Darius’ empire.
And have you ever noticed that when you look at a map of that area, Alexander came from the left side of his empire???
January 17th, 2007 at 2:03 pmAnother right-winger, who typically couldn’t resist an appeal to homophobia in an attempt to broaden his support - Muslims hate us because their disgusted by gay marriage. Never mind the fact that the US remains the most backward of all western democracies in regard to gay rights. Even Croatia and Slovenia, not exactly the first two countries that pop to mind when you think “liberal”, allow civil unions!
January 17th, 2007 at 2:03 pmWhy don’t the neocons just say that anything negative that happens in the future is the fault of FDR, Truman, JFK, Johnson, Carter, and Clinton, and be done with it. But then they couldn’t sell anymore books.
January 17th, 2007 at 2:20 pm#50 And more, Alexander was very probably an uncloseted gay without remorse. After all, he was greek and had no known wife. He was the seed of all the decay of the modern Middle East.
January 17th, 2007 at 2:24 pmSo conservatives and terrorists and religious zealots all have more in common with each other than liberal Americans and conservative Amercans do?
So conservatives and radical muslims do have lots in common. People have been saying it for a while now. This guy just admitted it.
Comment by ForTruth
As much as I hate to admit this, I agree with Rosie O’Donnell on at least one point. Fanatical Christians are as bad as Fanatical Muslims.
ForTruth. Keep in mind that not all conservatives subscribe to the radical right POV. Some of us actually think. Anyone that thinks that 9/11 happened solely because of our “liberal, secular” lifestyle in this country is nuts. We were attacked for being the 800 pound gorilla. We built the monsters (al Qaida) but we could not control it. Then it bit us square in the ass.
January 17th, 2007 at 2:26 pmIn my opinion, this is the start of the spin. When Iraq goes completely south. They will point to these type of statements, and say well we would have won, if the radical left hadn’t______. It is the same stuff they have been spouting about Vietnam for the last 30 years.
January 17th, 2007 at 2:28 pmDon’t forget the role the Amish played in all this. When do we start blaming the Amish?
January 17th, 2007 at 2:35 pmOne of the dirty little secrets of social conservatives in this country, that D’Souza hints at, is how much they really hate the messy freedom that characterizes America and envy Muslim societies for their patriarchal and theocratc rigidity. I can hardly imagine the howls of conservative indignation if, during the cold war, liberals had suggested that America become less capitalistic in order to get the Russians to hate us less.
January 17th, 2007 at 2:37 pmMe thinks I saw that name on a bottle of taquilla. I think this guy is full of the same.
Comment by Rebel In CA
Sauza is the name of the tequila. And it is not a good one. So you are correct.
Heterodoxy: Clinton also bombed a pharma complex in Sudan and, along with NATO, kill thousands of civilians by bombing Kosovo, Bosnia and Yugoslavia to help those same civilians, great job… oh, I forgot the chinese embassy.
January 17th, 2007 at 2:39 pmThe amish are a bunch of commies, and they should all be crushed by a big giant capitalist hammer.
January 17th, 2007 at 2:41 pmWhat kind of ass-backwards logic is this man employing here?
January 17th, 2007 at 2:43 pmFor those of you who know me on this board, I post from time to time and have very strong language (sometimes deleted by TP) for jerks like D’SOUZA; however, after seeing the BBC documentary THE POWER OF NIGHTMARES - (google video has all three parts), D’SOUZA, like all good liars, uses a bit of truth to what he speaks, not what he intends - the fact is that the most radical fundamentalists in the Muslim world (used to be a small number in the few hundreds) did and continue to commit acts of terror to defeat Western Democratic Ideaology in both government and society as they saw/see our leaders promoting this as a front to wage more war by installing leaders who will be a puppet to our government’s will and interests. D’SOUZA is a jerk and a liar but in this case is telling a bit of truth.
January 17th, 2007 at 2:45 pmWhat an f***ing idiot.
STOP USING THE TERM INTELLECTUAL IN CONNECTION WITH THIS IDIOT! I BEG YOU, STOP!
January 17th, 2007 at 2:45 pmOkay, let’s just *for a moment* accept D’Souza’s contention that FDR is “indirectly” responsible. My question to him would be, “How does FDR’s ‘giving away’ Eastern Europe to the Soviets lead to the Soviet involvement in Afghanistan 35 years later?”
January 17th, 2007 at 2:48 pmIf anything, I’d have to point out that (using that same logic) it was Eisenhower who is “indirectly” responsible since it was under the Eisenhower administration that the CIA overthrew a popularly-elected Iranian PM and reinstalled the unpopular Shah, which led to a quarter-century of the Shah’s brutal SAVAK thugs terrorizing the Iranians who finally tired of it and tossed the Shah out for Khomeini and the mullahs. In the year before the Shah’s overthrow, Afghanistan experienced its second coup of the decade led by a pro-Soviet group. Carter’s humanitarian offer to allow Pahlavi into this country for medical treatment which then led to the hostage crisis (this was Carter’s REAL mistake). It was in the midst of the hostage crisis that the Soviets backed another coup which installed an even more pro-Soviet leader and led to the Russian invasion of Afghanistan. In 1980, Carter announced that the US would protest this invasion by boycotting that year’s Summer Olympics to be held in Moscow, and at the end of the year, Carter lost the Presidency. Following Reagan’s installation as President, the hostages were heading back to the States (shenanigans on the part of the GOP, perhaps) and very shortly afterwards, the new and fervently anti-Soviet administration began financing anti-Marxist efforts worldwide, inlcuding Afghanistan (although the Afghan funding had to go through third parties, mostly Pakistan). The Soviets, it bears reminding, were out of Afghanistan in 1989 while fighting continued between the Marxist government of Najibullah and Muslim “freedom fighters” for three years. The Muslim rebels won in 1992, only to be beset by more fighting between moderate Muslim factions and fundamentalist Muslim factions which “ended” in 1996 when one of the fundie groups, the Taliban, captured Kabul and set up their extremist Islamic government. The Taliban were not, however, completely free and clear, as their government faced continued resistance from various groups and the Taliban only collapsed when the US led post-9/11 strikes against them (while completely missing the real target of the strikes, Osama bin Laden).
So, Mr D’Souza, please explain how FDR’s “giving away” Eastern Europe could possibly have led to a Soviet involvement 35 years later in South Central Asia.
Oh, I forgot. In a neocon argument, espousing ideological pabulum is more important than logical (and factual) reasoning.
Comment by bill bixby
Funny you identify yourself with a person/character who cannot cope with his anger, becomes really violent, has no reasoning, and uses violence to solve problems. Way to go.
Don’t get this guy mad.
January 17th, 2007 at 2:51 pmFair enough Robert.
January 17th, 2007 at 2:53 pmD’Souza: F.D.R. ‘Indirectly Responsible’ For September 11
Finally a historian with the courage to tell it like it is .
He is not biased like the left wing history books .
More power to you D’Souza .
Fortunately for the rest of us , we dont believe in form over substance in recording history like you liberals do .
Comment by bill bixby
BWHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAAAAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!
Whatta maroon.
Seriously. According to the “form” of your history, FDR’s involvement at Yalta wouldn’t have come about if Hitler hadn’t invaded Poland. THAT wouldn’t have happened if Franz Ferdinand hadn’t been assassinated and thereby beginning WWI… etc etc ad nauseum. Therefore anyone could have indirectly affected the outcome on that tragic day in New York.
Where do you stop this historical cherry-picking? When do the people who actually took action (or inaction in the case of our current administration) become accountable???
Stop blaming dead men for your problems. Cowards do that.
January 17th, 2007 at 2:57 pmJosephW, thanks for the history lesson of Afghanistan. You show enormous flaws in D’Souza’s argument.
Bill Bizby, is that enough substance for ya big guy?
Bill, when are you going to start going after the Amish. I mean if they hadn’t stayed so meek they would have been the major influence in this country and there wouldn’t had been a skyscraper to be hit by a plane (might not even have planes).
So let’s get after them. Because it couldn’t be the ignorant dry drunk, coke head Bush. Substance? Substance abuse.
January 17th, 2007 at 3:08 pmSome people just can’t deal with losing an election.
January 17th, 2007 at 3:09 pmI blame John Adams who started to appease the Muslim Terrorists from the Barbary Nations by signing a treaty with them in 1797. If it wasn’t or him they wouldn’t get the US is a treaty loving group of hippie pacifists. Damn you Adams!!
January 17th, 2007 at 3:09 pmbill bixby is that f*cking troll — rachel b
January 17th, 2007 at 3:10 pmWhy do us average folk, who are just trying to keep up with the happenings of the day have to put up with this false sense of power. Just quit all the hacks and attacks. Use your thoughts on the subject, not how to f$ck up the threads.
Congratulations, whoever is involved. You know how to get around security. I’m sure there are companies willing to pay you well for that. Just don’t mess it up for the rest of us.
January 17th, 2007 at 3:23 pmYes, let’s spend our time playing the blame game (and a bizarre one, at that) instead of finding actual solutions.
January 17th, 2007 at 3:25 pmD’Souza’s comments, as well as those by many neo-conservatives, boils down to this: “If you liberals would just lay down and die and let us conservatives do what we want, the world would be a better place.”
FDR was *THE* greatest president in our nation’s history. Period. FDR did more for the American people than any president before him or since. Had we continued the path that FDR started we would be in much better shape today.
I am just sick and tired of being blamed for 9/11 and everything else. 9/11 was not the “fault” of anyone, save OBL and his gang of murderers.
And just where is Osama, by the way?
January 17th, 2007 at 3:48 pmWhy stop with FDR?
Shoot. God is responsible for 9/11, because if he hadn’t created Earth and man, we would have never had the United States of America.
January 17th, 2007 at 3:58 pmform over substance
in recording history
like liberals do
Interesting. =)
Form, Fashion, Costumes (as in a Ballerinas)
Over Substance (beer, grain, mental verbal masturbation)
History
Well I would say neither one belongs in recording history.
January 17th, 2007 at 4:19 pmHowever it does make for a very interesting past =)
He can use BIG WORDS! In the Reich-wing that makes you an intellectual.
January 17th, 2007 at 4:21 pm9/11 was not the “fault†of anyone, save OBL and his gang of murderers.
And just where is Osama, by the way?
Comment by SickOfIraq
Is funny you say this cuz the FBI hasnt blamed OBL for 9/11. Yeah, I know, Im a nutjob. But I was just saying.
January 17th, 2007 at 4:44 pmHot damn! Even 60 years later, FDR still puts a weed up conservatives asses. NOW that’s some legacy!
January 17th, 2007 at 5:23 pm#13 –
D’Souza’s book is absolutely worthy of ridicule!
January 17th, 2007 at 5:38 pmI refer you to the concept of SATIRE.
You’re shitting me, right? This fool can’t be for real.
January 17th, 2007 at 5:38 pmI blame the BRITISH if only they had STAY THE COURSE and not listerned to the LIBErAL MEDIA they might have won the WAR OF INDEPENDENCE.
January 17th, 2007 at 6:08 pmPentagon disagrees.
January 17th, 2007 at 6:36 pm‘They hate our policies, not our freedom’
‘Muslims do not hate our freedom, but rather they hate our policies [the report says]. The overwhelming majority voice their objections to what they see as one-sided support in favor of Israel and against Palestinian rights, and the long-standing, even increasing, support for what Muslims collectively see as tyrannies, most notably Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Pakistan and the Gulf states. Thus, when American public diplomacy talks about bringing democracy to Islamic societies, this is seen as no more than self-serving hypocrisy.’
http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/1129/dailyUpdate.html
http://www.acq.osd.mil/ dsb/ reports/ 2004-09-Strategic_Communication.pdf
Colbert was magnificent last night as he allowed D’Souza to make a complete ass of himself.
January 17th, 2007 at 7:15 pmSC is honing his fine talents to do the same to O’Liely.
Do you all know that D’Souza has dated Ann Coulter in the past and was once engaged to Laura Ingraham?
January 17th, 2007 at 7:16 pmKeith Olbermann just made D’Sousa his “worst Person in the World” for the day.
January 17th, 2007 at 8:49 pmYup, Marie…just saw that, then flipped over to Comedy Central to watch the smackdown again.
Even better the second time! D’Sousa didn’t know what hit him. Priceless.
January 17th, 2007 at 8:53 pmThe thesis behind the book is false
January 17th, 2007 at 9:28 pmSee why we’re doing this?
OMFG!
Comment by trueblue
Let this be a lesson to you when you meet new people here whose only wish was to be accepted here and were run off
It aint never gonna be over trueblue you little bitch
You hear me ?
NEVER !
Just a little old thing called KARMA coming home to roost
Problem with that ?
Too f*cking bad you dumb bitch
DO NOT play thye victim here dumb bitch
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
See why we’re doing this?
OMFG!
Comment by trueblue — January 17, 2007 @ 7:55 pm
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
You are GETTING what you have COMING
Enjoy the ride
I am not even mad yet !
It gets a hell of alot better and I have so much fun lined up for you
True Blue and ZOOEY ?
I am putting you on notice
Your life is about to get very interesting here at TP
January 17th, 2007 at 9:35 pmD’SOUZA IS WRONG ANYWAYS.
January 17th, 2007 at 9:40 pm“TripMaster Monkey” sez:
The pathetic thing is that this weak little flamebaiter (calling this desperate little soul a ‘troll’ is an insult to proper trolls like Exley, Jason M. Hendler, and michael) actually seems to think that this sort of infantile behavior is clever.
The TRULY pathetic thing, however, is that the admins at TP allow this garbage to stand, seemingly not caring that it is demonstrably in violation of the Terms of Service of this site, while they fall all over themselves nuking perfectly valid posts from posters who have consistently proven their worth here.
Judd, I don’t blame rachel. She obviously has some deep-seated issues, and can’t help herself. But for you to allow this filth on your site is a tacit endorsement of this sort of behavior, and is inexcusable.
Judd, if you wish to preserve any scrap of Think Progress’ reputation as a respectable site where rational, interested individuals can come to express their views and read the views of other such individuals, you had better take steps to address this problem immediately, if not sooner. If, however, you are bent on running this site into the ground and utterly trashing what little integrity you still possess (as it appears you are), well then, full steam ahead.
January 17th, 2007 at 9:48 pmWhat is this ? DO all Heritage foundation members take mercury pills or something?
January 17th, 2007 at 11:16 pmCynicon Implant:
Comics making fun of serious people with serious issues is indeed something to worry about. However those that are in charge of leading this country, and one would suppose are serious people with serious issues, should stop acting like clowns.
January 17th, 2007 at 11:17 pmIf the people who comment on this site are typical of progressives, it’s no wonder we aren’t getting anywhere. Junior High ends at 13.
January 17th, 2007 at 11:50 pmGlad I’m just a simple person who doesn’t have to hide behind irony.
January 18th, 2007 at 12:18 amPut up a post that points out why the official 9-11 explanation is IMPOSSIBLE according to the laws of SCIENCE, and it gets removed, yet silly name calling post that have nothing to do with 9-11 remain.
Me thinks the name “Think Progress” is becoming an oxymoron!
January 18th, 2007 at 7:03 amOh, for the days when writers like Jacqueline Susann made millions writing trashy novels (”Valley of the Dolls”) instead of these times when pseudo-intellectuals make lots of money writing trash posing as history and/or political commentary!
January 18th, 2007 at 9:15 amI have to say it. Both sides agree with things that bin Laden and Zawahiri have said. When Americans point to each other and say, “Ha! You agree with what bin Laden said,” you are playing into this propaganda game. We need to just stop doing it. The best thing that can be done to messages from “Al Qeada” is to ignore them.
January 18th, 2007 at 10:21 am“53. #50 And more, Alexander was very probably an uncloseted gay without remorse. After all, he was greek and had no known wife. He was the seed of all the decay of the modern Middle East.
Comment by Evil Spaniard — January 17, 2007 @ 2:24 pm”
————————————-
Hey Evil - read a little history yourself. Alexander had TWO wives, and was getting it on the side as well from his best (male) friend and a Persian slave boy. Greeks (and Macedonians) didn’t HAVE closets. (Nor did the Persians!!!)
Seriously - Alexander overreached bigtime. He conquered an empire, and then died before he’d had even half a chance to knit it together - so it all fell apart. Something to think about, especially since he was both smart and competent - and the Bubble Boy, our current Alexander-wannabe, is neither.
January 18th, 2007 at 11:00 amI say it’s Abraham’s fault…
…if he was going to have so many damned kids…
…he should’ve taken a parenting class…
…to learn how to discipline their bad as*es…
January 18th, 2007 at 1:27 pm“Are there not any issues back home in India that he can tackle?
Comment by ≤ avatar — January 17, 2007 @ 1:12 pm
Dinesh D’Souza was not even born in this country!! Don’t the right-wing Nazis know they are outsourcing their stupidity to ugly furners?!? They better wake and smell the samozas!
Comment by Yikes! — January 17, 2007 @ 1:16 pm”
I’m politically about as far away from Dinesh D’souza as one can possible be. I hate his twisting of history to serve his right wing ideology, but I have to say the above two quotes make me sad that people who identify themselves as progressive have to stoop to racial and ethnic stereotypes. I share the identical cultural and historical background(Indian of Portuguese decent) as him and would be pissed off if some conservative told me that just because I was a naturalized citizen I didn’t have the same rights to an opinion as a native born one. His home is America and he’s entitled to his view without ugly references to him being an outsider.
That said I’m really glad Colbert spanked him on national tv.
January 18th, 2007 at 4:14 pmTo sunil,
January 18th, 2007 at 8:18 pmAs a Caucasian woman married to an Asian man, I understand your feelings and hope that Yikes! and avatar will reflect on their comments and perhaps apologize. In trying to parody the obnoxious D’Souza and his neo-con admirers, they still should not carried away to the point of making racist comments along the lines of ex-Senator Macaca Allen.
[…] Pushing his new book, Enemy at Home, Dinesh D’Souza argues that the blame for 9/11 lies at the feet of Liberals. […]
January 19th, 2007 at 10:10 amD’Souza is a moron. Even Glenn Beck thought this guy was stupid.
January 20th, 2007 at 10:59 am[…] D’Souza: F.D.R. ‘Indirectly Responsible’ For September 11 - ThinkProgress: “Prominent conservative intellectual Dinesh D’Souza has released a book titled “The Enemy at Home: The Cultural Left and Its Responsibility for 9/11.†[…]
January 20th, 2007 at 4:54 pmLet’s see, The Shah of Iran didn’t have the rug pulled out under him by the Carter Administration. He had lymphatic cancer and hid it from the Americans for a couple years. He alienated the group he needed most, the middle and upper classes, but some moves like trying to have only a one party state. He violated the 1906 constitution by the 1953 coup, and with his use of SAVAK. His managment skills were inept, and rather than skilled bureaucrats and official, he got ciphers and kleptocrats. The Iranian Revolution was years in the making. Granted the Carter Administration did some bad moves, but they were supporting a delusional leader, and the US Gov’t, whether it was under Carter, Ford, Nixon or Johnson was completely oblivious to the anger and alienation of the Shah. To say as D’Souza states that Carter pulled the rug out from under the Shah is so ridiculous.
Much like FDR’s “sellout” of Eastern Europe. The Soviet Union had over 360 Army Divisions in Eastern Europe by 1945. There was no possible way that the Soviets were going to have unfriendly gov’ts neighboring it.
FDR didn’t sell out Eastern Europe at Yalta. If he sold out Eastern Europe by the Yalta Agreement, why did Stalin feel he had to violated the agreement?, especially in Poland, which was the main concern at Yalta. The Soviets were the most emphatic that Poland had a Stalinist Gov’t in place.
Roosevelt’s crime was trusting Stalin too much, or thinking that being jovial to a monster would make him easier to deal with. The Yalta meeting didn’t set Eastern Europe in the Soviet’s orbit, it was already in it. The Yalta Agreement fault was that it took in face value that the Soviets would let nations in Eastern Europe self determine their political faith.
January 22nd, 2007 at 12:40 am