Before he left office, Pres. George W. Bush came up with the idea to link the 9/11 anniversary to volunteerism — something victims’ families had been recommending. This was widely hailed as a great notion, and the bill to make Bush’s idea law was passed this spring with bipartisan support. Apparently, no one told right-wing pundits about it.
One of the conservative bloviators’ favorite new topics is how “Obama’s idea” to celebrate volunteerism with a National Day of Service on 9/11 is an attempt to shove “socialism” down the country’s throats. Pundits like Michelle Malkin and Matthew Vadum have decried the National Day of Service idea, claiming, as did Vadum in American Spectator, that “The plan is to turn a ‘day of fear’ that helps Republicans into a day of activism called the National Day of Service that helps the left. In other words, nihilistic liberals are planning to drain 9/11 of all meaning.”
Um, guys? You might want to check the facts (remember those?) before your knee-jerking tendencies make you seem like, well, knee-jerk morons. Oops, too late.
This article appears in Aug 25 – Sep 1, 2009.
I dont put much stock in what Malkin puts out. I dont see anything wrong with a Natl day of service but its kinda unnecessary.