Manipulation
The White House continues its campaign of keeping the public off-balance, claiming the next 8 months constitute a serious threat period for terrorist attack. Really? More than the last eight months? Or the last year? Two years? The alarmist trend has been headed this way since Spain’s election, and they’re starting early because the Administration is in trouble in the polls. I’m sure Scott McCellan would indeed dismiss the claim that this is just the White House spinning public opinion through terrorism warnings, and I certainly don’t advise complacency. But the Bush government is characterized by lies, underhanded manipulation, and obfuscation, so their announcements get to be a little magical. If they warn us and it happens, they were right; but if they warn us and it doesn’t happen, they weren’t wrong, they were effective in prevention. Well, you could track the threat yourself if you’re really worried.

Addendum: Ashcroft says: Be Afraid; Ridge says: No Change. This has been happening since the Department of Homeland Security was established. Either Ashcroft has a press conference to tell us we need to be alert & Ridge follows to say the alert levels are unchanged, or it's the other way around; what doesn't change is the message. Sometimes, Ashcroft doesn't speak in counterpoint to Ridge, but only because Ridge is silent. Which one is mismanaging the message: both or neither?