The current rehashed brouhaha caused by the Libby indictment is, of course, bogus. The real issue is not even about Wilson and Plame. It is rather the climate and manner in which the Bush administration cunningly manipulated Congress, the media and the populace to agree to a ground war. What Bush and his cohorts simply but cleverly did was to exploit the voluminous backlog of media and congressional warnings about the mad dictator, “still” omnipotent to do harm to our defense, despite his humiliating defeat and under UN control.
As in cleaning up the Mafia that nevertheless remains a renegade power to be under scrutiny, so, too, existed suspicion of Saddam reborn. As in the cold war to justify an arms race, the power of the Soviets was overblown to keep the frenzy of imminent threat and mushroom clouds hovering for almost fifty years, George H, William J, and George W were not about to let up the pressure on Iraq. However, the two previous administrations, partially content, with UN inspections reporting that over ninety percent of WMD was destroyed and occasionally reminded Saddam of his place as a lame duck with occasional aerial attacks when the mouse roared. But with 9/11 engulfing the nation with a legitimate Pearl Harbor righteous spirit, the current administration exploited the symbolic call to regime change, lest the mushroom cloud become a reality, despite this regime having nothing to do with 9/11 other than joining many other Arab nations as sympathizers — like the principal suspending the coat-holders of a schoolyard fray but not the brawlers. When congress, with the exception of some hardy sixty members and a pitiful number of senators, approved the use of force — without defining the kind of force — believing it was simply to pressure the UN to forcefully reassess the Iraqi condition to press for undisputed compliance. Unknown to citizens was the early plan to boldly invade Iraq even before 9/11 on the premise of selected intelligence dramatically exaggerated. Obviously 9/11 facilitated the scheme as the nation was euphoric over kicking ass of the Taliban and disrupting al Qaeda.
The primacy of causation here is not the Bush administration, but rather the sheep-like mentality of America and its representation that the good old USA is always right in might. It never occurred to the likes of the media, the people and politicians ever since the Korean War that commitment to war is even more precarious when leaders follow the strategy of walking on eggs as a subterfuge for all out war. George H, perhaps wisely, wimped out the safe way. George W by “staying the course” dishonestly is wimping out the dangerous way — haunting echoes of Vietnam.
War is not a game; it is tragically serious stuff not to be toyed with.
Copyright © 2005 Richard R. Kennedy All rights reserved. Revised: November 5, 2005.
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