At a debate for the Republican (fascist/socialist) presidential nomination, held in Columbia, south carolina, representative Ron Paul, of the republic of texas, calls for self examination into the cases for 9-1-1 (9/11/2001): “They attack us because we’ve been over there, we’ve been bombing Iraq for 10 years.  We’ve been in the Middle East. … We don’t understand the irrationality of Middle Eastern politics.”  Shortly thereafter former Mayor Rudolph W.L. Giuliani, of New York City comments, “That’s an extraordinary statement—as someone who lived through the attack on September 11th—that we invited the attack because we were attacking Iraq.  I don’t think I’ve ever heard that one before, and I’ve heard some pretty absurd explanations for September 11th.”

       Question: Does Giuliani honestly believe that it is an absurd notion that a people that are attacked for a decade will react with anything other than hatred and violence?

       Postscript: Afterward Paul suggested a reading list in hopes that Giuliani might educate himself:

• Imperial Hubris: Why the West Is Losing the War on Terror, by Michael Scheuer;
• Dying to Win: The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism, by Robert Pape;
• Blowback: The Costs and consequences of American empire, by Chalmers Johnson; and
• The 9/11 Commission Report commissioned by CONgress.

       [added 4/12/2024] Thanks to G. Edward Griffin and Chuck McGlawn for this entry.