"There’s Osama bin Laden still running free. We’re deeper into Afghanistan and deeper into Iraq. I don’t see any end to it."

Right after 9/11, at the beginning of the 'war on terror', the government had unquestioned support. In every situation- Patriot Act, Guantanamo, not finishing the job in Afghanistan, invading Iraq, warrantless wiretaps, etc- people gave the administration the benefit of the doubt. One great example of this deference (besides the flag-waving rush to war in 2003) was when Bush flat-out lied in one of the '04 debates about his "just not that concerned" quote about bin Laden, and no paper found it headline worthy the next morning.

Coming up on 5 years later, people are starting to realize that they may not have deserved that benefit of the doubt. The fact is that the administration doesn't seem to have a better grip on the problem than they did before the attacks. They know there are terrorists and that they are working to stop them (and that the issue benefits them politically); but they don't deserve a parade for that, it's their job. However, they don't seem to have put any thought into who these people are and how our actions/inactions affect the situation (as the Iraq war- and Bush's lack of knowledge of the difference between Sunnis and Shiites before invading- has illustrated). President Bush still refers to them as "evildoers" and "folks" and works hard to conflate all the factions of the Middle East together as if they were one entity (ie. use of the generic term 'islamofascist'). In addition, the fact that the President, and most of the country it seems, still believe that the reason they hate us is "for our freedoms" is proof that they have the most simplistic view of the situation possible.

Their view of the situation just doesn't mesh with reality. Polls show people starting to agree-

...Five years after the attacks of Sept. 11, fully one-third of Americans think the terrorists may be winning, the poll suggests. Worries fed by the war in Iraq have spilled over into the broader campaign against terrorists who directly target the U.S.

Half in the poll question whether the costs of the anti-terror campaign are too great, and even more admit that thought has crossed their mind...

...Not everyone agrees the war in Iraq is central to the war on terror, as the Bush administration maintains. Six in 10 polled think there will be more terrorism in this country because the U.S. went to war in Iraq. Some feel strongly that the two wars are separate...

...And they are divided about whether they are losing personal freedoms, according to polling done between Aug. 7-17 with a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points...

...Objections to the U.S. policies include invading Iraq without sufficient support from allies, faulty claims of weapons of mass destruction and holding “enemy combatants” at Guantanamo for many months without trial.

Some say they’re worried that terrorists are recruited faster than they can be captured or killed...

The White House blames this on fatique and/or lack of patience. I have patience. I just don't share the administration's worldview or have any confidence that our current leaders know what the hell they are doing.

That seems to be an opinion growing in popularity. Maybe I'm a trendsetter.

[PS- Perfect time for another Al Qaeda video. Always good for getting the base riled up.]