Pre 9/11 Knowledge about Terrorist Threats

I don’t understand all the hubbub over the recent news that the Bush administration was warned about terrorist activity prior to 9/11. Well, duh. Just from memory, I can recall a multitude of news reports over last summer about “heightened alerts” and CIA warnings that Bin Laden was planning something major. Now, sure, virtually all of these reports were confined to the Middle East, but the line since 9/11 that intelligence agencies didn’t have substantial reports about possible activities on US soil and didn’t amplify their surveillance capabilities, at home and abroad (which had to provide some clues about an impending attack), was really, really hard to swallow.

What these revelations do seem to confirm, however, is the woeful state of journalism and the bankruptcy of the mainstream media in this country. This should not have been a story difficult to unearth, as much of the evidence has been lying around, in one form or another, since September. The fact that it takes 8 months for something like this to surface in the US highlights the media’s unwillingness to question official sources, and do any investigative reporting that will substantially challenge the corridors of power. Couple this with all the cheerleading and “cowing to patriotism” since 9/11, and you’ve got a case of serious neglect, willful ignorance, and perhaps criminal negligence on their part.

In his speech last night, Cheney basically said they weren't gonna ruffle too many feathers with an investigation. Of course this is utterly absurd, but it is quite consistent with the Bush cabal’s previous efforts to make their activities as transparent as lead. Other things that come to mind: How should we now interpret the request to avoid a thorough investigation back in January? What about this report? Will Cynthia McKinney get an apology from all those conservative pundits who attacked her for *gasp* having the audacity to call for a wider investigation weeks ago? (apparently not) Will those so-called conspiracy theorists receive any attention now? ...Even if they try to present themselves as serious “truth seekers” and pose relevant questions, not merely worst-case scenarios? What about someone like Mike Ruppert?

My immediate reaction to all of this was to shake my head: not because I couldn’t believe the story, but because this would not have been considered that big of a story if the media had been doing what they’re supposed to do all along.