NYT:Grieving Crowds in Spain Seethe at Train Attacks (political)

[DeepModem Mom]

Grieving Crowds in Spain Seethe at Train Attacks
By ELAINE SCIOLINO

Published: March 13, 2004


MADRID, March 12 — Grief and fury blanketed Spain on Friday evening as the country mourned the victims of its terrorist attack and struggled to discover who was responsible....

***

The center-right government continued to assert that the armed Basque separatist group ETA and not Al Qaeda, the terrorist organization, was probably responsible for the attack, although the evidence is confusing and nothing has been ruled out.

The political stakes in uncovering the identity of the terrorists are high. Spain's voters will elect a new government on Sunday. Mariano Rajoy, the handpicked successor of Prime Minister José María Aznar and the candidate of the governing Popular Party, is in the lead. He has pledged to continue the policies of Mr. Aznar, including Spain's full participation in the Bush administration's antiterror and Iraq policies....

***

Mr. Aznar's decision to join the American war effort in Iraq and send 1,300 troops there was overwhelmingly opposed by his people. If Al Qaeda is shown to be involved, perhaps as punishment for Spain's involvement in the war, it could affect the election's outcome.

With the party machine behind him, Mr. Rajoy, an uninspiring candidate and five-time minister, has run an extraordinarily organized campaign. Government and party officials went on the offensive against their political opponents to build the argument that ETA was responsible for the terrorist attacks....


http://www.nytimes.com/2004/03/13/international/europe/13SPAI.html

[xchrom]

1. like 9-11 here

eta or al queda -- aznar has been shown to be a failure.
however -- the support for center right politics may win simply because the people want to show solidarity for the fallen.
people have been known to work in mysterious ways.

[Dogmudgeon]

2. Get used to it

Chances are good that the Bush (re-)election effort will benefit from such an attack, too.

Team Aznar called for the rallies within a few hours of the bombing. They don't have the slightest evidence on either ETA or al-Qaeda, and it will take a thorough investigation to find out. But if Señor Aznar says it was ETA, he'll do his best to turn Northern Spain into a garrison state, bringing the hammer down on the Basques, as well as the inconveniently leftist Catalonians for good measure.

--bkl

[truthisfreedom]

3. if, and God help us, I hope it never happens, but if we are attacked again

i expect we'll have millions in the streets as well, asking for peace.

peace is something that went out of fashion when the bushistas took control.

peace is something we all need. peace on earth.

[DeepModem Mom]

4. I'm appalled at the political manipulation of this tragedy...

if the Times's reporting is accurate: "Government and party officials went on the offensive against their political opponents to build the argument that ETA was responsible for the terrorist attacks."

[Cooley Hurd]

5. Good morning DeepModemMom!

There's an existing thread in LBN regarding the post-attack protests. Please continue discussion here:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=418480

Thanks! :hi: