During an era in which mainstream media outlets seem to go to extremes (pun intended) to downplay or ignore the danger of Islamic extremism, it?s interesting to read the following passage in TIME?s profile of John Brennan, the president?s top homeland security and counterterrorism adviser:
John Brennan’s portfolio covers a hair-raising spectrum of horribles, including everything from cyberattacks to earthquakes and pandemics. But the top priority of the White House’s top adviser on homeland security and counterterrorism is the continuing threat of radical Islamists who have mounted a series of attacks on the U.S. during President Barack Obama’s tenure that came close to killing countless innocents.
The print version of this article offers this addition in the following paragraph: ?The autocratic regimes in Arab countries like Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen are all crucial, if imperfect, U.S. partners in the fight against Islamic extremism. Brenan?s role during this period, says a White House spokesman, is ‘to stay vigilant for the potential for a terorrist dimension to develop as the situation unfolds.’?
It?s refreshing to read such a matter-of-fact acknowledgment of the Islamist threat in TIME. Has enough time elapsed since the end of the hated Bush administration for his successor to admit the threat openly these days?
