The October Surprise has a long and inglorious history amongst Republicans [or perhaps just in my mind] as an election winning tactic second only to voter supression.
Everyone has been waiting for Bush and Cheney to pull some stunt. But the economy, Sarah Palin, Ashley Todd and the Phillies have distracted us...the Surprise Package has arrived. Bush and Cheney have been pushing ever more into Pakistan with drone aircraft, but haven't yet precipitated a pre-election foreign military crisis that can steal the show from the economy and get McCain elected. Now the attacks are getting nastier, and they have added Syria to the mix. What will be next? Iran? I would bet my 401K on it (need I state the obvious?).
Wired:
Last night, an American pilotless plane reportedly killed 20 people during an attack on a militant compound in Pakistan. It could well be the deadliest drone strike ever.
Pakistan-based guerrillas have emerged as the top threat to American operations in Afghanistan....This is at least the 19th UAV attack in Pakistan's tribal areas "since the beginning of August," the New York Times notes. "In the first seven months of 2008, there were five strikes." Some of the "strikes are taking place as deep as 25 miles into Pakistani territory." And they are growing increasingly deadly. During one week in September, U.S. drones killed more than 50 people in four attacks.
The strike on Syria was made with an almost identical rationale, and is a huge blow to stability in the Middle East:
U.S. military helicopters launched an extremely rare attack Sunday on Syrian territory close to the border with Iraq, killing eight people in a strike the government in Damascus condemned as "serious aggression."
A U.S. military official said the raid by special forces targeted the network of al-Qaida-linked foreign fighters moving through Syria into Iraq.
link
The Syrians (and the Arab League) are much more vociferous than the Pakistanis:
LONDON: Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem accused the United States on Monday of "terrorist aggression" over a deadly raid on a village in Syria near the border with Iraq.
He vowed Syria would defend itself against any further attacks of the sort, and voiced hopes the next US president would learn from the "mistakes" of George W. Bush.
"We consider this criminal and terrorist aggression," Moallem said in his first comments on Sunday's attack in the village of Al-Sukkariya near the Iraqi border.
Ah, now THAT is the kind of foreigny/warry stuff that will get some headlines. Notice, by the way, that Ditz Presidential candidate Palin met with the Israeli ambassador in that capital of diplomacy Fredericksburg, VA. (?) Coincidence? I think not.
Hang on folks, I think this may get very dicey.