Here's why they're dropping Bin Laden's name

CNN:

Nearly six in 10 Americans oppose the war in Iraq and a growing number of them are dissatisfied with the war on terrorism, according to a CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll released Monday.

Only 39 percent of those polled said they favored the war in Iraq -- down from 47 percent in March -- and 59 percent were opposed.

The poll showed that approval for the Bush administration's war on terrorism also has declined, with 10 percent of respondents saying they were very satisfied with the way things were going in the war on terrorism, down from 19 percent in a February poll.

Forty-seven percent of respondents said they were "not satisfied" with the war on terrorism -- up from 35 percent in February -- and 42 percent were "somewhat satisfied," compared to 45 percent in the earlier poll.

Even so, only 4 percent said they considered a terrorist attack in the United States over the next few weeks "very likely" -- down from 10 percent in February.

Thirty-one percent considered an attack somewhat likely and 63 percent said one was not likely, compared to 38 percent and 51 percent, respectively, in a December poll.

Fewer than four in 10 Americans said they were at least somewhat worried about becoming a victim of terror.

Not good news for Bush, and further proof that he needs Bin Laden at large, not in the docks. As long as the boogeyman is loose, Bush can always use him as a weapon. Captured, Bin Laden is of no use to him.

It is NOT encouraging, however, that the relentless parade of Jacko Jacko Jacko Runaway Bride Bennifer Natalee Holloway Jacko Jacko Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes Jacko Jacko Jacko has made people complacent about terrorism. Even those of us who think Bush's war has EXACERBATED rather than easaed the threat don't think we can afford to be complacent. We want terrorism addressed EFFECTIVELY, which Bush policies don't do. If people don't understand that Bush's policies have made the threat worse instead of better, we're in big trouble.

Even more discouraging is the one number that looks good for Bush: The poll showed that 52 percent of respondents approved of how the United States has treated prisoners at the detention camp in the naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba -- compared to 37 percent who disapproved. This means that most Americans don't care about humane treatment of prisoners, don't care that many of the people imprisoned down there have never been charged and don't understand how this violates American precepts. It means that despite the encouraging numbers about Bush's performance, the reptilian brain is still alive and well in America.