Stuff what's goin' on
The FBI is going to investigate the security firm Blackwater and their role in "Iraq's Bloody Sunday". Blackwater: "No comeuppance!" Well... maybe some. Waxman's committee is grilling the chairman of Blackwater on C-Span right now. (Here's some background on Blackwater and their ties to the Bush administration Also here.)
Juan Cole on the Spanish Downing Street Memo, and why Bush turned down Saddam's offer to leave before we attacked.
Bush was aware of, and rejected, an offer by Saddam Hussein to flee Iraq, probably for Saudi Arabia, presuming he could take out with him a billion dollars and some documents on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction programs. Both provisions were intended by Saddam to protect him from later retaliation. The money would buy him protection from extradition, and the documents presumably showed that the Reagan and Bush senior administrations had secretly authorized his chemical and biological weapons programs. With these documents in his possession, it was unlikely that Bush would come after him, since he could ruin the reputation of the Bush family if he did. The destruction of these documents was presumably Bush's goal when he had Rumsfeld order US military personnel not to interfere with the looting and burning of government offices after the fall of Saddam. The looting, which set off the guerrilla war, also functioned as a vast shredding party, destroying incriminating evidence about the complicity of the Bushes and Rumsfeld in Iraq's war crimes.
The claims by some pundits that Saddam's reported desire to take documents on his WMD programs out of the country proves he had such programs in 2003 or that he wanted to somehow retain specialized knowledge involved in them, are silly. Saddam had destroyed his chemical, nuclear and biological programs and stockpiles, which we know from the most extensive postwar inspections in the history of mammal life. Almost certainly, he wanted to keep with him the documents that showed precisely that-- that he was in fact in compliance with UN resolutions (which he was) and so could not on those grounds be subject to extraordinary rendition and delivered to the Hague.
[emphasis mine]
Hey, remember when Dan Rather did that story about how Bush never completed his National Guard service, and he got blasted and fired? Well, the story was accurate, and Rather is suing CBS.
If the court accepts his suit, ...[it] will become an extraordinary commission of inquiry into a major news organization's intimidation, complicity and corruption under the Bush administration. No congressional committee would be able to penetrate into the sanctum of any news organization to divulge its inner workings. But intent on vindicating his reputation, capable of financing an expensive legal challenge, and armed with the power of subpoena, Rather will charge his attorneys to interrogate news executives and perhaps administration officials under oath on a secret and sordid chapter of the Bush presidency.
In making his case, Rather will certainly establish beyond reasonable doubt that George W. Bush never completed his required service in the Texas Air National Guard.
I'll wait to pop the popcorn until the suit is accepted, but this could be excellent.
Iran:
For some perspective, here's how we used to act when a reviled foreign leader came to visit. Hint: like grown-ups.
Via fishsanwitt, Seymour Hersh on the Bush administrations plan for Iran. In a candid interview with Der Spiegel, he talks about how we're not learning from our mistakes.
Scott Ritter argues that the anti-war movement must shift focus to preventing a war with Iran. Unfortunately, he may be right; it doesn't look like the Dems in Congress are gonna take action to end the Iraq War soon, no matter how much the public wants them to. War with Iran would be a catastrophe, and if we're gonna have any chance of stopping it, we've gotta get out ahead of the propaganda curve. (If you haven't yet, check out how Fox News is already pushing for a war with Iran.)
Open Thread.
Juan Cole on the Spanish Downing Street Memo, and why Bush turned down Saddam's offer to leave before we attacked.
Bush was aware of, and rejected, an offer by Saddam Hussein to flee Iraq, probably for Saudi Arabia, presuming he could take out with him a billion dollars and some documents on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction programs. Both provisions were intended by Saddam to protect him from later retaliation. The money would buy him protection from extradition, and the documents presumably showed that the Reagan and Bush senior administrations had secretly authorized his chemical and biological weapons programs. With these documents in his possession, it was unlikely that Bush would come after him, since he could ruin the reputation of the Bush family if he did. The destruction of these documents was presumably Bush's goal when he had Rumsfeld order US military personnel not to interfere with the looting and burning of government offices after the fall of Saddam. The looting, which set off the guerrilla war, also functioned as a vast shredding party, destroying incriminating evidence about the complicity of the Bushes and Rumsfeld in Iraq's war crimes.
The claims by some pundits that Saddam's reported desire to take documents on his WMD programs out of the country proves he had such programs in 2003 or that he wanted to somehow retain specialized knowledge involved in them, are silly. Saddam had destroyed his chemical, nuclear and biological programs and stockpiles, which we know from the most extensive postwar inspections in the history of mammal life. Almost certainly, he wanted to keep with him the documents that showed precisely that-- that he was in fact in compliance with UN resolutions (which he was) and so could not on those grounds be subject to extraordinary rendition and delivered to the Hague.
[emphasis mine]
Hey, remember when Dan Rather did that story about how Bush never completed his National Guard service, and he got blasted and fired? Well, the story was accurate, and Rather is suing CBS.
If the court accepts his suit, ...[it] will become an extraordinary commission of inquiry into a major news organization's intimidation, complicity and corruption under the Bush administration. No congressional committee would be able to penetrate into the sanctum of any news organization to divulge its inner workings. But intent on vindicating his reputation, capable of financing an expensive legal challenge, and armed with the power of subpoena, Rather will charge his attorneys to interrogate news executives and perhaps administration officials under oath on a secret and sordid chapter of the Bush presidency.
In making his case, Rather will certainly establish beyond reasonable doubt that George W. Bush never completed his required service in the Texas Air National Guard.
I'll wait to pop the popcorn until the suit is accepted, but this could be excellent.
Iran:
For some perspective, here's how we used to act when a reviled foreign leader came to visit. Hint: like grown-ups.
Via fishsanwitt, Seymour Hersh on the Bush administrations plan for Iran. In a candid interview with Der Spiegel, he talks about how we're not learning from our mistakes.
Scott Ritter argues that the anti-war movement must shift focus to preventing a war with Iran. Unfortunately, he may be right; it doesn't look like the Dems in Congress are gonna take action to end the Iraq War soon, no matter how much the public wants them to. War with Iran would be a catastrophe, and if we're gonna have any chance of stopping it, we've gotta get out ahead of the propaganda curve. (If you haven't yet, check out how Fox News is already pushing for a war with Iran.)
Open Thread.