Liberals, do you agree with this article? Why or why not, what say you?

Question

OK, the incredible details of the operation to silence Osama bin Laden are, indeed, irresistible -- but our government's been saying way too much about them, tipping off al Qaeda and clueing in other bad guys.

You can't blame the press; its job is to get the story. But you can finger the White House and other government officials for not keeping enough of a zipped lip on some elements of the historic operation.

For instance, what about the early, broad -- and repeated -- disclosure of a "treasure trove" of information taken during the raid on Osama's compound in Pakistan?

Instead of broadcasting the intelligence grab, we might've waited a while -- so we could more fully exploit some of the windfall before alerting al Qaeda operatives to take defensive measures.

Perhaps, based on the info on the computers and drives taken during the operation, we could've tapped or geo-located some cellphones used by the al Qaeda network, hacked into some e-mail accounts, nabbed other bad guys and so on.

Yes, the terrorists no doubt took countermeasures to cover their tracks upon hearing about the events in Abbottabad -- but they might not have done as clean a sweep if we hadn't bragged of stumbling upon a "mother lode" of information.

And, yes, it's fascinating to know how our spooks tracked the courier and the SEALs stormed the compound -- but did we really have to coach the bad guys on this? That sort of grandstanding will likely prove counterproductive.

And what about the existence of a CIA safe house in Osama's 'hood? Sure, the operation and folks who pulled it off undetected deserve a hearty "well done" for outstanding tradecraft and lots of guts, but the attaboys should come inside the confines of Langley -- not in the press.

Now, the release of the "Osama vanity videos" is OK. Their real value lies in the less-than-favorable light they put on the now-dead al Qaeda leader, perhaps putting another nail in the coffin of the terrorist movement he founded.

But in war -- and we're still in one, by the way -- it's critical to protect intelligence sources, methods, (sometimes) triumphs and the wondrous ways of our intrepid special operators from actual and future enemies, who mine for such nuggets of privileged info.

If we blab too much about our sensitive national-security successes, we'll only make collecting the intelligence that keeps us safe harder to get as well as (potentially) putting our forces in harm's way.

We got Osama because al Qaeda & Co. didn't know we were on to him and how we might get him. That's a good thing. But even though this terror takedown is over, it won't be the last required. That's a real good reason to keep our bag of spook and special-ops tricks secret.

Anonymous · Accepted Answer

Obama doesn't give a damn about doing what's best for the country. He cares about advancing the ball for the marxists while winning reelection.

pip · Answer

A lot of people much more trained in intelligence than you or I decided what would and would not be released based on what was best for them long before the media got wind of it.  They may have decided that there wasn't, actually, that much of a "treasure trove" and to bluff to get Al Queada operatives scared and running... because a target that has to move leaves traces.

All I'm saying is, the people who are the best at what they do don't make silly mistakes.  They do everything with purpose.  I have no doubt that everything they have let "slip" has been part of the script.

SCUBA · Answer

I am not an expert on counter terrorism.

That said, it seems to me that any action al-quaida takes now is akin to closing the barn door after the horse escapes.  The al quaida operatives who would be influenced by the press would already know most, if not all, that the press revealed.  It did not seem to me that we were told too much of the specifics of the surveillance operations or the kill osama operation.

However, the questions you raise are interesting

Anonymous · Answer

it's monday morning quarterbacking, when you didn't even watch the game...

THE SIMPLE FACT IS... we only know what the gov. tells us... we don't know how accurate it really is or not... some or much of that information may be intentionally inaccurate as far as we know...

in the end, I trust our intel guys to know what is sensitive and what is not... and some of that info that was released may be released for a reason that you or I am not privy too...

in my little experience with some of these types, nothing is an accident...

EDIT: they wouldn't have gotten bin Laden in the first place if they were as sloppy as this story implies... that should tell you something...

EDIT2: yeah, I know it was released after... do you think that they can't release information with a prupose after a raid? how do you know none of it should have been revealed? 
oh, that's right, you're assuming you know every fact and that every fact was given and it's all true... er... yeah...k...

did you ever think for one second that they could have a reason for this release... what that reason is, I don't know, but that something that they know may give them a good reason to release it?

Anonymous · Answer

If Obama single-handedly cured cancer, you would probably find ten different reasons to claim cancer was good for America.

And If George W Bush had given the exact same order to kill Osama and had talked about the mission exactly as Obama now is, you would be saying Bush deserves to be sculpted  on Mt.  Rushmore.

You've made hating the President the signature feature of your entire lifestyle.

Anonymous · Answer

Cool Story Bro!

rusert · Answer

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Anonymous · Answer

To bad BHO could no keep his mouth shut about it for at least a day so the intelligence that was found there could be used .Not a very wise move on his part.

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Liberals, do you agree with this article? Why or why not, what say you?

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