Today is 9/11, and lots of politicians will be pointing fingers at each other, patting themselves on backs, demonizing the other party, and taking credit for actions, deservedly and undeservedly. Mister Blunt and Cranky is blessed with (or perhaps “afflicted by” is a better way of saying it) an excellent memory, and he will say two things that we should all remember:

Number A: Bill Clinton tried but failed to kill Bin Laden and wipe out al-Qaeda;

Letter 2: Bush The Dumber ignored Bin Laden and al-Qaeda until 9/11; after which date HE tried but failed to kill Bin Laden and wipe out al-Qaeda.

Both administrations were warned about the threat, and showed varying degrees of willingness to accept input from national security experts.  Unlike the batshit-crazy “Truthers”, this writer will not say that Bush The Dumber was responsible for 9/11. He will, however, say that the evidence shows that experts were trying to get the attention of the Bushies, and the Bushies did not listen: http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB147/index.htm is one of many sources.

It is a fruitless waste of time to speculate on what could have been changed had Condi, Dickie, and Co. shut their mouths long enough to open their ears. It is NOT, however, a waste of time to remember their unwillingness to listen to experts at a time of grave peril to our nation; and to remember the consequences of that failure to listen.

Too often, executives and others hide behind their preconceived notions and ignore any input that does not fit into those preconceptions. As we move into a future of a deteriorating global security environment, we need to learn from the mistakes of 2001 and pay attention when the intelligent individual we hired is trying to tell us something we may not want to hear.

These days, it can be a matter of life and death.

Mr. B & C

P.S. President Obama did listen to his smart people, and has wasted a whole load of terrorist mother***ers (including OBL) as a result. Listening works.