I was thinking it might take a few days for the loony left to begin forwarding their conspiracy theories, but what do I know? James Taranto, who publishes one of my favorite daily columns, Best of The Web Today noted the comment excerpted below from Josh Marshall’s Talking Points memo website, which came on the same day as the attacks!

As I’ve written before, I have next to no confidence that this administration won’t pump exaggerated or bogus terror plots for short term political advantage. Especially as we move toward an election they seem likely to lose. But when the Brits completely shut down their major international airport (though now the shutdown seems to be easing) I’m quite ready to believe they found something very real.

Rove and his crew of course will stop at no end of bamboozlement and terror manipulation for political ends though. And the timing, well . . .

Sounds very much like the way I said it would sound, doesn’t it?

On the Democratic Underground today, WillyT posted this question:

Just now watching the western edition of NBC Nightly News. Campbell Brown refers to the “Terrorist plot that has Americans shaken.”

Just wondering.

I’m curiously NOT shaken.

Matter of fact, because of the ineptitude of the current administration, and the current leadership in congress, I, (and I’m sure many of you) saw this coming miles away!

Here are a few responses:

MrSlayer: “Not at all. I’m pissed off That they have to politicize this absolute nothing story and inconvenience everyone to try and score some terror points. It’s disgusting and disgraceful.”

SmokingJacket: “Five years ago I said, “Just watch out for all the foiled plots we’re going to see now.” Can’t have another 9-11, because that would mean they failed to protect us, so the alternative is lots of foiled plots. I don’t know if they’re real or not, but I do know they serve the administration’s agenda: keep us all scared of terrists [sic].”

MODemocrat: No, I’m not shaken; Bush & Cheney scare me more. It’s hard to work up too much interest in something that the republicans are using to up their ante in their contributions to the republican party. Terror talk is all they have; and it’s so downright funny whenever I get this mental picture of the pretend Crawford cowboy. and the fat old vice president, hiding out, except for going to their money raising rallies; and then try to trick us into believing they are ‘PROTECTING US’, and I laugh out loud. I’d feel safer being guarded by my terrier dog.”

[Actually, I feel pretty safe being guarded by my terrier as well, but not on a plane flying over the ocean somewhere between London and New York.]

kmlewis: “more shaken by fact i would be ‘relieved’ of my lip balm per the new regulations. i can’t go 10 minutes without having to apply a layer, seriously. i am so addicted. i told the bf that we aren’t flying anytime soon and he just [rolled his eyes].”

[Sounds to me like Ms. Lewis’ boyfriend has the right of it.]

Of course, if UK and US intelligence agencies had failed to foil this plot and it had been successfully carried out, we wouldn’t be hearing these crackpots whine and moan over the “timing” of it all. Instead, we would be hearing calls for immediate impeachment over yet another failure by the Bush Administration to protect the homeland.

It’s a case of “damned if you do, damned if you don’t.” If the administration does the right thing, it’s a political ploy. If they ever fail to foil a major plot, it will be yet another sign of a weak and incompetent administration.

One response to the DU post makes this very point, in so many words:

Lastlaughin08: No. Not surprised, since we’ve poked the beehive over and over. Courtesy of GWB and his big stick.

Which leads to another dilemma for those on the left. If we do nothing, as we did before 9/11, we encourage terrorists to attack us. If we do something, then we are “poking the beehive” and stirring up more terrorist activity.

Similarly, if we stay in Iraq, we stir up more terrorist activity. But if we leave, won’t al Qaeda simply declare victory and use it as a marketing tool to bring in more terrorists than ever before?

Last night I was in a pub with some people from my company. We had just completed a day of training and I was getting to know some people from other offices after a dinner we all attended. The subject of the foiled plot came up, of course, and a discussion ensued over the Bush Administration. It was actually a very calm debate, and towards the end, one of our group said, basically, “why can’t we just leave them alone and they leave us alone? Why do we have to go hunt them down and stir up more trouble?”

Unfortunately, that is the way many Americans feel. They don’t understand the implications of simply walking away from Iraq and letting that country succeed or die on it’s own. FDR would have understood, but it seems like most of today’s Democrats, including party leaders in Washington, have now completely abandoned the long and honorable legacy of their party as a tough-minded defender of freedom across the globe.

And those in the DNC who do understand and appreciate the history and legacy of their party, like Joe Leiberman, are no longer welcome in that party. It’s very sad and, as those Dems will find out in November, a very bad move for their party.

Well, Democrats either picked a really bad time to become the “anti-war-at-all-costs” party or as conspiracy theorists will likely soon claim, “there’s something fishy about the timing of all this!”  I’m just waiting for that to happen.  Later today I’ll begin surfing DemocraticUnderground.org and other left-leaning sites to see what I can find.

Here’s what I expect to see from these kooks:

“Well, just as the grassroots/netroots movement asserts itself against the Iraq war, we have this so-called ‘terrorist plot’ which is uncovered!  Hmmm…

Rather convenient that the plot includes both US and UK airlines and citizens don’t you think?  And now, all of a sudden, it’s the only thing you see and hear on the news.  Sounds to me like the Bush/Blair team is up to their old tricks!  Distract, distort, and deflect!”

I know that some of the hard left kooks are already thinking along these lines.  It can’t be much longer before you’ll see these theories posted on all the lefty sites.  I wonder when Kos will dive into the fray.  Once he does, then I’ll consider the whole topic to be “mainstreamed” for the left.