How Cynical Are Americans?

I doubt that many of the 35 percent of Democrats who told the pollsters they believe that Bush knew about 9/11 in advance would welcome being cross-examined on the subject, or defend their contention very strongly if they were. After all, it would take little short of a monster to know in advance about the attack and yet do nothing, in order to scare the American people into supporting an American attack on Iraq or some other political objective. With at least part of our brain, we know better than that. To go along with such a suggestion about Bush is surely better understood as a sort of reflexive spasm of contempt for the man, rather than a considered judgment of his likely behavior.

But it is chilling, nonetheless, to realize that a significant portion of the American public is willing to say what that poll reported them as saying. Fortunately, most of us are not. I have an abysmally low opinion of many politicians, but I can't think of a single one in either party whom I would suspect for a moment of being willing to ignore foreknowledge of 9/11 for mere political advantage.

I would rather have one fool me than believe that of him.