Paul Krugman Blog on 9/11 Sparks Huge Backlash

On the morning of 9/11, The New York Times columnist and Nobel Laureate Paul Krugman wrote a short blog posting titled The Years of Shame.

In 181 short words, Krugman called Bernie Kerik, Rudy Giuliani, and George W. Bush fake heroes who raced to cash in on the horror. He also said the memory of 9/11 has been irrevocably poisoned and has become an occasion for shame.

Krugman complained that the 9/11 attacks were used to justify what he deems the unjust invasion of Iraq.

Anticipating nasty backlash, he disabled comments for his blog posting.

The backlash, lacking an outlet on the post itself, splashed across the Internet.

Why you would publish such a hateful piece on a day when the country's heart breaks is beyond me. Whatever your political beliefs, people lost loved ones on 9/11 and using this day to spread more hate and anger is really reprehensible. Just very sad... wrote one person on the Paul Krugman blog Facebook page.

Concerning your 9/11 blog... Shame? It's all yours Pauly, you despicable piece of human debris, you foul excrement. Bush and Giuliani are 'fake heroes,' while you vomit your delusional bile oh-so-bravely behind your locked-out comments? wrote another.

What is so tragic is that you probably think you're doing America a great service by writing this filth, not understanding that your timing is obscene, self-serving and utterly hurtful, wrote a third.

Donald Rumsfeld, former U.S. Secretary of Defense, called Krugman's piece repugnant and cancelled his subscription to The New York Times.

Paul Krugman hates America. Look what he wrote on 10th anniversary of 9-11, wrote one Twitter user.

In Krugman's defense, some liberal writers and commenters agreed that Iraq's invasion was unjustified and applauded him for having the courage to speak the truth.