Post by robeiae on Dec 7, 2016 9:24:33 GMT -5
In Tampa, Florida yesterday, the President talked at length about terrorism, counterterrorism, and the Admin's track record in this regard.
On social media, I'm seeing quite a few shares of pieces that mock a comment of the President, thought the comment seems to vary: "over the last eight years, no terrorists have successfully attacked us," "no terrorist has successfully executed an attack," and so on.
Here is the transcript of his remarks: www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2016/12/06/remarks-president-administrations-approach-counterterrorism
And here is his actual comment, the one that is getting twisted:
Now, I think this statement--as given--is true. Undeniably true. There's been no 9/11-style incident in the last eight years. There's been no infiltration of the U.S. by actual agents of a terrorist organization, followed by a terrorist attack be the same. And I think it's perfectly reasonable for Obama to assume some credit for this reality (though maybe, just maybe, he should acknowledge that the previous Admin set the table for him, because the steps taken by the Bush Admin after 9/11 clearly had an impact here, love them or hate them, there's no way around this. But I digress...
Anyway, this kind of trolling by social media, these kinds of click-bait pieces that open with a total lie are a serious problem. And they're not "fake news," imo. They're not Russian ops, they're people here who are willing to distort things to get clicks (and maybe to push an agenda).
All that said, however, let's look at Obama's statement in full context. He was talking about events in Libya and elsewhere, about how ISIL was being beaten back, both on the filed and on the internet, with help from others around the globe. Then he said this:
Perfectly fair. He's a politician making a speech, after all. He then switches back to the global fight, to talking about how it's not over, and tosses in a little Climate-Change-as-the-cause, just for good measure. Then he says this:
Look, he's right about there being no organized terrorist attack from abroad in the U.S. across the last eight years, but the above kinda gets my goat. I seriously started this thread to criticize the people misrepresenting the President's words, but in doing that, I read the whole speech and saw the above. And it's juts not true, not accurate. The linkages that exist for a number of the above "deranged killers" (terrorists, goddammit!) are not limited to the United States. Calling them "homegrown" is, imo, factually inaccurate, and very close to an outright lie. After all, one of the San Bernardino killers was from Pakistan and had lived in Saudi Arabia until 2014. The other had visited her there and had made previous trips there, as well. And the Boston bombers were both from Kyrgyzstan, where their family had been forcibly moved by the Soviets (they are Chechens). Chalking all of this up to "homegrown" is not only dishonest, it's also dangerous imo.
Opinions?
On social media, I'm seeing quite a few shares of pieces that mock a comment of the President, thought the comment seems to vary: "over the last eight years, no terrorists have successfully attacked us," "no terrorist has successfully executed an attack," and so on.
Here is the transcript of his remarks: www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2016/12/06/remarks-president-administrations-approach-counterterrorism
And here is his actual comment, the one that is getting twisted:
No foreign terrorist organization has successfully planned and executed an attack on our homeland.
Now, I think this statement--as given--is true. Undeniably true. There's been no 9/11-style incident in the last eight years. There's been no infiltration of the U.S. by actual agents of a terrorist organization, followed by a terrorist attack be the same. And I think it's perfectly reasonable for Obama to assume some credit for this reality (though maybe, just maybe, he should acknowledge that the previous Admin set the table for him, because the steps taken by the Bush Admin after 9/11 clearly had an impact here, love them or hate them, there's no way around this. But I digress...
Anyway, this kind of trolling by social media, these kinds of click-bait pieces that open with a total lie are a serious problem. And they're not "fake news," imo. They're not Russian ops, they're people here who are willing to distort things to get clicks (and maybe to push an agenda).
All that said, however, let's look at Obama's statement in full context. He was talking about events in Libya and elsewhere, about how ISIL was being beaten back, both on the filed and on the internet, with help from others around the globe. Then he said this:
This is your work. We should take great pride in the progress that we’ve made over the last eight years. That's the bottom line.
No foreign terrorist organization has successfully planned and executed an attack on our homeland. (Applause.) And it’s not because they didn't try. Plots have been disrupted. Terrorists have been taken off the battlefield. And we've done this even as we drew down nearly 180,000 troops in harm’s way in Iraq and Afghanistan. Today there are just 15,000.
No foreign terrorist organization has successfully planned and executed an attack on our homeland. (Applause.) And it’s not because they didn't try. Plots have been disrupted. Terrorists have been taken off the battlefield. And we've done this even as we drew down nearly 180,000 troops in harm’s way in Iraq and Afghanistan. Today there are just 15,000.
Perfectly fair. He's a politician making a speech, after all. He then switches back to the global fight, to talking about how it's not over, and tosses in a little Climate-Change-as-the-cause, just for good measure. Then he says this:
And what complicates the challenge even more is the fact that for all of our necessary focus on fighting terrorists overseas, the most deadly attacks on the homeland over the last eight years have not been carried out by operatives with sophisticated networks or equipment, directed from abroad. They’ve been carried out by homegrown and largely isolated individuals who were radicalized online.
These deranged killers can’t inflict the sort of mass casualties that we saw on 9/11, but the pain of those who lost loved ones in Boston, in San Bernardino, in Fort Hood and Orlando, that pain continues to this day. And in some cases, it has stirred fear in our populations and threatens to change how we think about ourselves and our lives.
These deranged killers can’t inflict the sort of mass casualties that we saw on 9/11, but the pain of those who lost loved ones in Boston, in San Bernardino, in Fort Hood and Orlando, that pain continues to this day. And in some cases, it has stirred fear in our populations and threatens to change how we think about ourselves and our lives.
Look, he's right about there being no organized terrorist attack from abroad in the U.S. across the last eight years, but the above kinda gets my goat. I seriously started this thread to criticize the people misrepresenting the President's words, but in doing that, I read the whole speech and saw the above. And it's juts not true, not accurate. The linkages that exist for a number of the above "deranged killers" (terrorists, goddammit!) are not limited to the United States. Calling them "homegrown" is, imo, factually inaccurate, and very close to an outright lie. After all, one of the San Bernardino killers was from Pakistan and had lived in Saudi Arabia until 2014. The other had visited her there and had made previous trips there, as well. And the Boston bombers were both from Kyrgyzstan, where their family had been forcibly moved by the Soviets (they are Chechens). Chalking all of this up to "homegrown" is not only dishonest, it's also dangerous imo.
Opinions?
