The Baytown Sun (Baytown, Tex.), Vol. 91, No. 193, Ed. 1 Sunday, October 2, 2011 Page: 4 of 22
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4Athe Baytown Sun
Viewpoints
Sunday
October 2, 2011
Mullen’s mulling is Carter-esque moment'
Robert Conquest, pre-eminent
historian of the genocides, purges
and terrors of the Soviet Union,
has long contemplated the blind-
ers the West weqrs so as not to
look at the millions of dead bod-
ies for which the gigantically
Evil Empire was responsible.
“Why people didn’t, and still
don’t, understand the communist
regimes has to do with their con-
centration on reputable, or rep-
utable-sounding, phenomena,”
Conquest wrote in a 2005 essay.
“This is what amounts to an
attempt to tame the data or, per-
haps more correctly, a mental or
psychological bent toward block-
ing the real essentials, the real
meaning.”
In only rare instances is this
block ever exposed. One memo-
rable example came when Jimmy
Carter announced to the world
that the December 1979 Soviet
invasion of Afghanistan "has
made a more dramatic change in
my own opinion of what the
Soviets’ ultimate goals are than
anything they have done in the
previous time I’ve been in
office.” Since this was the presi-
dent of the United States talking.
not Little Bo
Peep, such
laughable
naivete - evi-
dence of taming
the datai or
blocking reali-
ty - was subject
DIANA WEST to ridicule, even
at the time.
After all, what
could be dramatically opinion-
changing about the USSR's inva-
sion of Afghanistan, given that it
simply repeated familiar histori-
cal patterns of Soviet behavior?
But such was the mental or psy-
chological bent that compelled
Carter, on meeting the regime's
ambassador, Anatoly Dobrynin,
to say: ‘Tve heard great things
about you and your service in
Washington. I hope to have a
great relationship with you and
also with Mr. Leonid Brezhnev.”
It was great, all right - at least
until Carter finally got the mes-
sage that Brezhnev was lying to
his face, via the detente-era “hot
line." Boo hoo: He couldn’t trust
the Soviet dictator anymore.
Such gullibility has long out-
lasted the Soviet Union, of
course. Indeed, a similar story
has been unfolding in official
Washington as Adm. Mike
Mullen, chairman of the Joint
Chiefs of Staff, publicly declared
his disappointment with
Pakistan's actions in support of
jihad terrorism in Afghanistan as
“part of their national strategy.”
Just as Carter took three years to
admit what the Soviets were up
to, so Mullen has taken three
years to face any facts about
Pakistan. And that's after no
fewer than 27 visits to Islamabad
since 2008.
“Each time I go, I learn more,”
a chastened Mullen told The Wall
Street Journal. “But one of the
things I learn more is I have a lot
more to learn.”
He should have stayed home.
Maybe then Mullen could have
perused a variety of sources doc-
umenting official Pakistani poli-
cies of complicity with terror net-
works in Afghanistan and India.
As Joint Chiefs chairman,
Mullen didn't have to wait for
WikiLeaks to release the October
2009 cable from then-U.S.
ambassador to Pakistan Anne
Patterson, in which she stated
that “no amount of money” could
convince the Pakistani govern-
ment to stop supporting Taliban
and other jihad groups. Then
eyes wide open,” Mullen said of
Pakistan two weeks after Osama
bin Laden was killed and
Pakistan was reported to be
again, maybe, as Conquest might sharing U.S. stealth helicopter
*»., u. .u„ technology with the Chinese.
say, he just preferred “taming the
data.”
Mullen told a Pakistani mili-
tary audience in December 2009
he wasn't interested in dwelling
on the past: “l am here to write a
history for the future. It is really
my intent... to build a future that
Trust isn't going to be re-estab-
lished overnight."
Then when? In a sudden but
overdue revelation reminiscent
of the 39th president's, Mullen
has now, according to the
Journal, “concluded that the
re-establishes that trust.” ThaVs partnership approach he long
one way to conmitrate on “rep- had championed had fallen short
utable-sounding phenomena”
and deny pesky facts.
Such concentration requires
ignoring the available record,
such as a June 2010 study from
the London School of
Economics, which found that
support for Taliban in
Afghanistan was "official poli-
cy" of Inter-Services
Intelligence (ISI), Pakistan's
CIA. The report further main-
tained that Pakistani President
Asif Ali Zardari met with cap-
tured Taliban leaders to assure
them of the Pakistan govern-
ment's “full support.”
“I’ve gone into this with my
and would be difficult to revive.”
“I have been Pakistan’s best
friend,” Mullen lamented.
“What does it say when I am at
that point? What does it say
about where we are?”
It says that Uncle Sucker's
policy - trust Pakistan but forget
about verifying anything - has
been downright Carter-esque.
Diana West is the author oj
"The Death of the Grown-up:
How America's Arrested
Development Is Bringing Down
Western Civilization," and blogs
at dianawest.net. She can be
contacted via dianawest@veri-
zon.net.
OUR VIEW
Month-long observance
highlights serious concern
October is National
Breast Cancer
Awareness Month, and
The Sun joins millions
across the country in
raising awareness and
helping in the fight
against this deadly
disease.
Breast cancer is the
most common cancer
in women in the
United States, aside
from skin cancer.
According to the
American Cancer
Society, an estimated
192,370 new cases of
invasive breast cancer
are expected to be
diagnosed among
women in the United
States this year.
An estimated 40,170
women were expected
to have died from the
disease in 2009 alone.
Today, there are
about 2.5 million
breast cancer sur-
vivors living in the
United States.
Our special section
in Friday’s paper -
printed on pink paper
- is one way the news-
paper hopes to help
raise awareness of this
disease.
The first NBCAM
program took place in
October 1985 as a
weeklong event to fill
the information void
in public communica-
tion about breast can-
cer. .
Today, the National
Breast Cancer
Awareness Month
organization is com-
prised of several
national public service
organizations, profes-
sional medical associ-
ations, and govern-
ment agencies work-
ing in partnership to
build breast cancer
awareness, share
information and pro-
vide access to screen-
ing services.
Many of us have lost
friends or family to
cancer.
Yet, thanks to devel-
opments from research
funded through events
like Relay for Life,
many more have loved
ones who have been
diagnosed with cancer
and survived.
We support National
Breast Cancer
Awareness Month
because we believe it
has and will continue
to make a positive
impact in the battle
against cancer, and we
ask our readers to join
us in this support.
Question of the
Vjeek! j.
' 4am ^
LAST WEEK’S RESULTS
li'Uitliiii
■Do you think Academy opening-in Baytown wi lead to I
■other big name retailers coming to the area?
To Vote go to www.baytowrisun.com
and click your answer!
Answers in next Sunday s edition!
Which lexan would you rather see as the
GOP nominee: Rick Perry or Ron Paul??
Yes 55% (203)
No 43% (156)
Unsure 2% (8)
The State Fair - a Texas tradition
I recently had the great honor
of cutting the ribbon to official-
ly open this year’s State Fair of
Texas.
Like most Texans, the State
Fair has a special place in my
heart.
Attending the State Fair is a
fall tradition for many Texans.
When I was in college, 1 came
to cheer on my beloved
Longhorns as they played the
Sooners in the Cotton Bowl
during Texas-OU Weekend.
The national Red River rival-
ry during the State Fair has been
a time of reuniting friends from
both universities for years. And
now, I bring my children to
enjoy the sights, sounds and
tastes of the fair!
While fried bubblegum is the
recent fried food contest winner
- our family favorite is the good
old-fashioned corny dog.
The State Fair has been a
Texas institution for 125 years.
What began in
1886 as the
Dallas State
Fair and
Exposition has
evolved into an
annual celebra-
tion of Texas’
KAY BAILEY diverse history,
HUTCHISON cu,ture‘ culi-
-------nary arts, agri-
culture and commerce.
More than 250 million visi-
tors have attended the State Fair
since it first opened.
Whether from East Texas or
Far East Asia, fairgoers are wel-
comed with open arms and a
“Howdy Folks!” from Big Tex.
The State Fair has also been a
robust economic engine for the
region, creating more than
300,000 jobs.
It has brought an economic
impact of $10-512 billion to the
area.
Even during difficult eco-
nomic times, the Fair gives vis-
itors a tremendous value for
their entertainment dollar. This
has been a hallmark of the State
Fair throughout its history.
During the Great Depression,
Texas celebrated its Centennial.
To mark this anniversary. Fair
Park embarked on a massive
building project to include
museums, exposition halls, a
band shell, a lagoon and many
terraces and waterways.
More than 8,000 people were
hired for this project, including
builders and laborers, artists
and sculptors. In 1936, more
than six million visitors attend-
ed the Fair, including President
Franklin D. Roosevelt.
We still enjoy these magnifi-
cent buildings designed for the
Centennial.
They have been renovated
and restored and are considered
some of the finest examples of
Art Deco architecture and art in
America today. This year,
Texas celebrates its 175th
anniversary, and in the splendid
Hall of State the Fair has
brought together memorabilia
and artifacts from Sam Houston
and Santa Ana showcasing our
state's unique history. And to
show once again that everything
is bigger and better in Texas,
they even have a life-sized
replica of the Alamo!
I hope every school in the
state will take the opportunity to
bring students to see the Texas
history exhibit.
The State Fair of Texas is full
of wonderful sights, sounds and
smells. Texas cooks and bakers
have been bringing their prized
recipes for judging since the
Fair’s early days.
Our best craftsmen and
women compete for the “best in
show” and the winners are on
display. And the State Fair’s
Big Tex Choice Award for tasti-
est and most creative fried
foods has been a culinary staple
competition for the past seven
years.
This year's winners are fried
buffalo chicken in a flapjack and
fried bubblegum - proving once
again that Texans can fry - and
eat - just about anything!
There is something for every
generation to enjoy at the State
Fair that runs this year from
September 30 through October
23.
Whether you are coming for the
football - Texas-OU or
Grambling-Prairie View A&M; or
to taste the variety of foods; to
ride the Midway rides; take in this
year’s State Fair Musical; or walk
through the craft and cooking
demonstrations and contests, the
State Fair of Texas creates fond
memories and continues a great
Texas tradition.
Kay Bailey Hutchison is the
senior U.S. Senator from Texas.
Bara* Obama,
President
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I95V1974
EDITORIAL
BOARD
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EdltorMjblteher
Angle Page!
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Ar4om si-__hi
i Atiam Yanetii
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JknRnley
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(member
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Gray, Janie. The Baytown Sun (Baytown, Tex.), Vol. 91, No. 193, Ed. 1 Sunday, October 2, 2011, newspaper, October 2, 2011; Baytown, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1029165/m1/4/: accessed April 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Sterling Municipal Library.