I got the following in an email forward. even when it backs up my beleifs, I take every email forward with a grain of salt. Even the most believable ones end up being false (according to snopes.) That being said, I found this interesting, especially the point about Detroit.
FACTS TO BACK UP THE HYPOCRISY IN THE US DEMOCRATIC POLITICS!
Subject: Is G W Bush the Worst President In History?
(now a word of caution because I’m not positive these Detroit numbers are precise) but if I read it correctly, there were 39 combat related killings in Iraq during the month of January….. in the fair city of Detroit (Michigan) there were 35 murders in the month of January. That’s one American city folks, about as deadly as the entire war torn country of Iraq!
Worst president in history?
The following appeared in the Durham, NC local paper as a letter to the editor:
Liberals claim President Bush shouldn’t have started this war. They complain about his prosecution of it. One liberal recently claimed Bush was the worst president in U.S. history. Let’s clear up one point: We didn’t start the war on terror. Try to remember, it was started by terrorists BEFORE 9/11. Let’s look at the “worst” president and mismanagement claims.
FDR led us into World War II. Germany never attacked us: Japan did. From 1941-1945, 450,000 lives were lost, an average of 112,500 per year.
Truman finished that war and started one in Korea, North Korea never attacked us. >From 1950-1953, 55,000 lives were lost, an average of 18,333 per year.
John F. Kennedy started the Vietnam conflict in 1962. Vietnam never attacked us. I think history might show Eisenhower committed the troups and Kennedy was honoring that commitment.
Johnson turned Vietnam into a quagmire. From 1965-1975, 58,000 lives were lost, an average of 5,800 per year.
Clinton went to war in Bosnia without UN or French consent, Bosnia never attacked us. He was offered Osama bin Laden’s head on a platter three times by Sudan and did nothing. Osama has attacked us on multiple occasions.
In the two years since terrorists attacked us, President Bush has liberated two countries, crushed the Taliban, crippled al-Qaida, put nuclear inspectors in Lybia, Iran and North Korea without firing a shot, and captured a terrorist who slaughtered 300,000 of his own people. We lost 600 soldiers, an average of 300 a year. Bush did all this abroad while not allowing another terrorist attack at home.
Worst president in history? Come on!
The Democrats are complaining about how long the war is taking, but…
It took less time to take Iraq than it took Janet Reno to take the Branch Davidian compound. That was a 51 day operation and the Davidian’s never attacked the USA.
We’ve been looking for evidence of chemical weapons in Iraq for less time than it took Hillary Clinton to find the Rose Law Firm billing records.
It took less time for the 3rd Infantry Division and the Marines to destroy the Medina Republican Guard than it took Teddy Kennedy to call the police after his Oldsmobile sank at Chappaquiddick.
It took less time to take Iraq than it took to count the votes in Florida!!!!
Our President & military are not perfect, but the GREATEST!
I’d be interested in seeing how much of it is true, much of it sounds reasonable, and easily verifiable.
OK– Here’s the real facts you seemed to have missed, Let’s look at these claims:
IRAQ Casualities:
Period US UK Other* Total Avg Days
3 59 1 3 63 1.85 34
2 715 27 58 800 1.89 424
1 139 33 0 172 4 43
Total 913 61 61 1035 2.07 501
http://icasualties.org/oif/
FDR led us into World War II. Germany never attacked us: Japan did.
Japan certainly did attack the United States on December 7, 1941 — and four days later Germany declared war on the United States*
The United States *responded* by declaring war against Germany, and that declaration even mentions Germany’s declaration of war:
“Congressional Declaration of War on Germany, December 11, 1941:
“Declaring that a state of war exists between the Government of Germany and the government and the people of the United States and making provision to prosecute the same.
“Whereas the Government of Germany has formally declared war against the government and the people of the United States of America:
“Therefore, be it Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, that the state of war between the United States and the Government of Germany which has thus been thrust upon the United States is hereby formally declared; and the President is hereby authorized and directed to employ the entire naval and military forces of the government to carry on war against the Government of Germany; and to bring the conflict to a successful termination, all of the resources of the country are hereby pledged by the Congress of the United States.”
But you think *FDR* was responsible for this? He *made* poor Japan and Germany declare war against the United States first, helpless victims of his control?
> Truman finished that war and started one in Korea
Yet history reports that the North Koreans started it on June 25, 1950, when they launched a surprise attack on South Korea, even taking Seoul:
http://helmi.home.pages.at/mash/english/history.html
> North Korea never attacked us.
All those American soldiers who died defending South Korea just committed suicide, right? Because the poor innocent North Koreans never attacked them!
> John F. Kennedy started the Vietnam conflict in 1962.
Do I really have to explain how false and utterly *stupid* this claim is?
Kennedy had nothing to do with starting the Vietnam conflict.
The Pentagon records the Vietnam War’s starting date as November 1, 1955.
*Eisenhower* sent US military there, *before* Kennedy became President.
Kennedy was elected in 1960, and actually took office in January 1961.
Whenever you get around to actually studying history, or visiting the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington DC, look up the names of Dale Buis and Chester Ovnand, who were killed by Viet Cong guerrillas on July 8, 1959, in Bien Hoa, Quang Tri province, South Vietnam.
http://www.ci.elmira.ny.us/history/eileen_collins.html
> Vietnam never attacked us.
Oh no, certainly not, ask the families of Buis and Ovnand, as well as so many others.
Look up “Siege of Khe Sanh”, and “Tet” just for starters.
And all the other *drinking* deaths during a certain Tet celebration?!….
> Clinton went to war in Bosnia without UN or French consent
It’s NATO that went in there.
> He was offered Osama bin Laden’s head on a platter three times by Sudan
I’m happy to say that Richard Clarke debunked this thoroughly in his book “Against All Enemies” — and so did the National Commission on Terrorism.
http://news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/911rpt/32304dplmcyrpt.pdf
Sudan did *not* offer Osama to the US. The US would have accepted him.
> and did nothing.
What he did against Osama got him accused by Republicans of “wagging the dog”.
It was the *Republicans* who didn’t think Osama was a real threat, which is why *they* did nothing about him once they got the Presidency.
> Osama has attacked us on multiple occasions.
Yes, and Clinton managed to block many of those attacks, but you didn’t know that either, did you?
Foreign terrorist attacks *averted* by the Clinton administration:
“Attempts to blow up the Holland tunnel, the Los Angeles airport, to blow up planes flying to the Philippines, an attempt on the Pope’s life, an attempt to blow up the biggest hotel in Jordan over the Millennium weekend, to destroy a Christian site in the Holy Land, to plant bombs in cities in the Northwest and the Northeast, and many others.”
— http://www.truthout.org/docs_01/11.10A.Clinton.htm (from 11/07/01)
Also see http://clinton3.nara.gov/WH/New/html/19980522-4986.html (1998)
The 1995 report “US Initiatives Against International Organized Crime” (copy at http://www.fas.org/irp/news/1995/48488876-48494350.htm ) included:
* Arrested and brought back to the U.S. to stand trial terrorists hiding in Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines, Jordan, and Egypt.
* Made swift arrests following both of the major terrorist incidents that have taken place in the U.S. (World Trade Center and Oklahoma City).
* Broken up two major attacks on the U.S. that were about to take place, before they could happen (New York: UN and Holland tunnel; Manila: US flag 747s)
As CNN reported ( http://fyi.cnn.com/2001/LAW/05/10/embassy.bombings.01 ) :
“In the 1995 terrorism trial over a failed plot to blow up five New York City landmarks, the jury deliberated seven days before returning guilty verdicts against Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman and nine others.
“The trial lasted eight months as evidence was presented about the plot targeting the U.N. General Assembly building, the New York FBI building, the Lincoln Tunnel, the Holland Tunnel and the George Washington Bridge.”
Also see http://www.cnn.com/US/9609/05/terror.trial/index.html .
The International Policy Institute for Counter-Terrorism (home page: http://www.ict.org.il/institute/frame.htm ) details, among other arrests, in an article from 09/17/01 ( http://www.ict.org.il/articles/articledet.cfm?articleid=385 ):
“The planner of the WTC operation, the Palestinian Ramzi Youssef, escaped arrest in 1993 and in 1994 devised a plot to plant bombs abroad twelve U.S. airliners operating in the Far East. In a trial run, the group exploded a bomb aboard a Philippine airliner, killing one passenger. These plans were discovered when Youssef flew to the Philippines, where he prepared the assassination of the Pope. Youssef was later caught and extradited from Pakistan to the U.S. where he was sentenced to life in prison.
…
“In December 1999, an Algerian, Ahmed Ressam was arrested while trying to smuggle explosives and detonators into the U.S. from Canada, and a plot to bomb the Los Angeles airport was foiled. Ressam’s arrest led to the discovery of more Algerian terrorists and their supporters: Abdelmajid Dahoumane, indicted along with Ressam; Mokhtar Haouari, an Algerian accused of providing money and support for the attack on the airport; Hamid Aich, an Algerian arrested briefly in Ireland, then released; Mohambedou Ould Slahi, a Mauritanian who might link the Algerians directly to bin Laden.”
> In the two years since terrorists attacked us, President Bush has
… *still* not caught Osama bin Laden…
> liberated two countries,
Iraq is “liberated”? That must be news to the Iraqis.
A PBS reporter in Iraq (on Friday, April 9) quoted a Sunni Imam as saying:
“This is no longer an uprising; it is Jihad. We are no longer Sunnis and Shi’ites; we are Muslims. No matter what the United States does on June 30, we will keep fighting until we have driven all foreigners out of Iraq.”
Well, George W. Bush *did* say that he would be a uniter, not a divider….
But what does that have to do with terrorists attacking us?
“We’ve had no evidence that Saddam Hussein was involved in Sept. 11.”
— George W. Bush, September 17, 2003.
(Reuters article archived at http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/0918-03.htm )
Bush has: crushed the Taliban, crippled al-Qaida,
put nuclear inspectors in Libya, Iran and North Korea
Hmmmm…. I wish it were so- sorry kiddo- just wishful thinking.. just read ANY current newspaper. In fact yesterday the Homeland security department declared that they have info that ME terrorists have crossed the boarder in Mexico and they fear (Homeland) that they are hear to cause major injury to the republican convention next month….
AMERICAN FAMILIES ARE STILL WAITING FOR A DOMESTIC AGENDA
You don’t suddenly become president when its time to run for reelection. In the 1,298 days since bush has taken office, 4 million have lost health insurance, 1.8 million jobs have been lost and four million young people have dropped out of high school. That’s what a lack of a domestic agenda will do for a nation. It shouldn’t take a political campaign to focus on families.
WHERE is the Bush plan to get our soldiers home and let Iraq build its own country! Should we rebuild them (so they can produce more oil and charge up through the nose for it) WHILE americans are homeless, crime is on the rise, americans are out of work, americans are hungry, the elderly here cannot afford to buy medicine to ease their pains???
WHERE is the international diplomacy? Regardless of your personal thoughts- the leaders of our Ally Nationals are not to be dismissed because you feel that someone “kicked sand in your face”.
My Response-
1- Re-read the first two sentences and the last sentence. It was an email forward and I made no claim to its accuracy. I pointed out only that I thought it was “interesting”.
2- I hope that was already typed out as a response to the email going around. This is an older post that very few would likely read. I’d hate to see you go to all this work when I’m likely the only audience you’ll have.
3- If you’ve read more than just this post, you know that I’m no fan of Bush. I’m definitely no socialist though, and so I see him as the lesser of two evils in the coming election.
You sound like a Kerry Kool-Aid drinker. Just because our European enemies (France, Germany, and Russia) didn’t want to help us because they had some pretty sweet black-market deals going with Saddam that they didn’t want to lose doesn’t mean we should hide in a corner and allow ourselves to be trodden underfoot. Saying we had no international diplomacy is an insult to the over 60 countries that supported us. Disregarding 60 because of the protest of 3 is dishonest and borderline traitorous.