Terrorism

For decades opponents of nuclear energy have warned that each reactor and disposal site is a potential bomb capable of causing thousands of civilian deaths and billions of dollars in damage if struck by the type of terrorist attack witnessed September 11th. Such precautionary warnings were given little credence or dismissed as anti-nuclear fearmongering in the past. Now that the unthinkable has occurred, the terrorist threat to nuclear facilities is being generally acknowledged.

"Suddenly, dramatically, unalterably the world has changed," observes Washington Post media critic Howard Kurtz. "And that means journalism will also change, indeed is changing before our eyes. The presidency will become a constant focus in ways not seen since the height of Ronald Reagan's struggle against the so-called Evil Empire. Reporting on the military, the spy services, diplomacy and global terrorism will heat up after years of back burner status." Kurtz also thinks that government censorship of the press may see a revival.

During part of Friday, Spin of the Day provided a link to a story by Robert Scheer of the Los Angeles Times titled Bush's Faustian Deal with the Taliban. We have discovered, however, that Scheer's story was misleading and inaccurate. His story, written on May 22, 2001, reported that the Bush administration had given $43 million to the Taliban as "an ally in the drug war. ... The gift ... makes the U.S.

"If, as appears increasingly likely, groups associated with terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden are found to be responsible for Tuesday's murderous attacks in New York and Washington, the United States would be fully justified in taking vigorous action to apprehend and punish him and to put his terror networks out of business," observes Michael Klare.