We all had it wrong, says Kay. So what? It matters little since the intent was never to scrape up WMD from Saddam’s junk pile left behind by the original weapons inspectors. The Rove plan was to perpetuate the highly successful perception of a wartime president — he learned that from FDR. Everybody loves a commander-in-chief who kicks ass, the hell with the presidency of peace.
The nation is supposed to accept the inevitability of lousy Intelligence, despite the billions of dollars poured into the agencies. This goes as far back as Pearl Harbor and the Bay of Pigs, so why be surprised? — including the tragic, inexcusable stupidity in failing to prevent 9/11.
We are a superpower but with a national IQ of moron expected to digest bullshit. We may understandably brag about our democracy even though we act like authoritarian fools.