Washingon and Cajones

I watched the first part of ABC's rather good The Path to 9/11 last night. Unfortunately I have to wait until Saturday to see part two since our local ABC affiliate is showing Charger's football tonight (go figure, I watch a television show for the first time in months and they make me wait almost a week to see the conclusion). A very powerful part of the film, even though it was cut from the original version, was when the United States botched the opportunity to actually get Bin Laden. Due to a lack of testicular fortitude our national security "leaders" refused to give the go-ahead to our people in the field who along with several members of the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance had Osama in their sights. Ahmed Massoud, the later assassinated leader of the Northern Alliance is given the line "Are there any men left in Washington, or are they all cowards?" I have been asking myself this question over the last couple of years. Time and time again those in Washington, and particularly those in my own party of choice (Republican, just in case you haven't figured it out by now), have demonstrated a depressing lack of will or even desire to lead. What matters now is re-election and politicians on both sides of the isle have sold their souls to get get the power that comes with it, but they no longer want the responsiblity that comes with it. Within the Republican party one need simply look at the following statements to see the shift in thinking:

"Government isn't the solution, government is the problem" - Ronald Reagan

"Too often, my party has confused the need for limited government with a disdain for government itself" - George W. Bush.

Government, geeze, I find it had to even use that word because it implies some type of governing which means to exercise authority (which has been abdicated to polls and greed for power) or to exercise control (and as we have seen those in both parties exercise about as much control as drunken sailors on payday), has lost it's backbone. I have come to believe, as does Pat Buchanan, that "... Congress is an institutional coward", they allow the courts and the administration deal with the hot issues that they should deal with all for the sake of enough popularity to get re-elected.

Sadly Mr. Massoud, the answer to your question is "No".