Foreign Correspondence

[Amaunet]

U.S. Amends Report to Show Rise in Terror

Not only has there been a rise in terrorism worldwide America is at greater risk of a nuclear attack from terrorists because of the Bush administration's "single-minded focus on Iraq”.

If Bush were a doctor he would have been sued for malpractice. Whatever ‘positive results’ have come about they are ineffective in holding back the rising tide of terrorism. Yet in the manner of a lower primate Bush persists in his futile destructive course.
#msg-3392254

Yet one must consider that in light of the fact that Bush wants a world war his course of action which has perpetuated a rise in worldwide terrorism is exactly what he desires.
#msg-3231543

U.S. Amends Report to Show Rise in Terror


Updated 11:18 AM ET June 22, 2004


By BARRY SCHWEID

WASHINGTON (AP) - Secretary of State Colin Powell is prepared to announce a sharp increase last year in victims of terrorism worldwide, correcting findings that were used to bolster President Bush's claim of success in countering this scourge of violence.

A revised State Department report ready to be released shows a dramatic increase in both the number of deaths and other casualties, as well as a less dramatic boost in incidents, a senior department official said Monday.

Still, the revised report shows that international cooperation and a heightened awareness of the terror threat were bringing positive results, said the official, who agreed to discuss the still-unreleased report only on condition of anonymity.

The initial report was issued in April. On June 10, the State Department acknowledged the findings were inaccurate. Powell attributed the errors partly to a new data system and said there was no attempt to manipulate the figures to buttress Bush's argument.

When the report was issued, senior administration officials claimed that it showed Bush's counter-terror campaign was a success.

State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said the report was based "on the facts as we had them at the time. The facts that we had were wrong."

The April report said attacks had declined last year to 190, down from 198 in 2002 and 346 in 2001. The 2003 figure would have been the lowest level in 34 years and a 45 percent drop since 2001, Bush's first year as president. The department is now working to determine the correct figures.

Democratic Rep. Henry A. Waxman of California had challenged the initial findings. He said he was pleased that officials "have now recognized that they have a report that has been inaccurate, and based on the inaccurate information they tried to take self-serving political credit for the results that were wrong."

Among the mistakes, Boucher said, was that only part of 2003 was taken into account.

Powell said, "I can assure you it had nothing to do with putting out anything but the most honest, accurate information we can."

"Errors crept in that, frankly, we did not catch here," Powell said. The report showed both a drop in the number of attacks worldwide in 2003 and the virtual disappearance of attacks in which no one died.

Copyright 2004 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

http://dailynews.att.net/cgi-bin/news?e=pri&dt=040622&cat=news&st=newsd83c4rpo0&src=....



Reference:
Woolsey, a Wolfie pal, bluntly told U.C.L.A. students that to reshape the Middle East, the U.S. would have to spend years and maybe decades waging World War IV. – San Diego Union Tribune, note: They count the Cold War as World War III

But several of the hawks outside the administration who had pressed for war with Iraq have moved to the next step. R. James Woolsey, a former director of central intelligence, said Wednesday that Iraq was the opening of a "fourth world war," and that U.S. enemies included the fundamentalist religious rulers in Iran, states such as Syria and Islamic terrorist groups.
Woolsey seemed to be speaking for at least some in the administration. But Bush's aides will not discuss the future – yet.
"We don't want to talk about a broader agenda now," one of his aides said. "It's not the time. The time will come."
Excerpt from Bush aides deny war new aspect in foreign policy

By David E. Sanger
NEW YORK TIMES NEWS SERVICE
April 6, 2003

#msg-2101766