5 Years and Counting
This blog is older than the Iraq War so, unfortunately for me, if you go back to that time I was in favor of this godforsaken war. I really have no excuses. The only one I ever tried after figuring out how stupid I was really that dumb, was that I figured even the Bush administration couldn’t be that wrong. Austin Mayor then pointed out to me that they have been unsuccessful at everything they have ever tried except making Democrats wet their pants. Point taken. I have no excuse.
March 27th, 2008 at
“Austin Mayor then pointed out to me that they have been unsuccessful at everything they have ever tried except making Democrats wet their pants. Point taken. I have no excuse.”
AP,
I hope you are not inferring a “told ya so” where none was intended.
Like so many good people your perception at the time was not clouded by anger and paranoia. Unfortunately, an unhealthy degree of anger and paranoia was necessary to recognize that the President of the United States was lying to the American people about the need to go to war.
The very idea that a president would lie to a nation that had just suffered a terrible, murderous injury is appalling — and the notion that he would lie to drag that nation into an unnecessary war was utterly revolting. It doesn’t come naturally to people of good character. Especially when Madison Avenue’s finest propaganda weapons were deployed via every news outlet.
The nation’s best hope was that sufficient members of Congress would exhibit the professional skepticism required by the separation of powers. But too many abdicated their responsibility — when it came time to vote on the Iraq war, Sen. Clinton did not even read the National Intelligence Estimate, she just read the summary. Larry, I am absolutely certain that you would have read the goddamn NIE! — and put the fate of our nation and the world in the hands of a single man: George W. Bush.
So even though I rabidly opposed the war from the get-go, I do think there is a legitimate excuse for failing to foresee the disaster and it is this:
“I could not believe that so many leaders in the Democratic party — Clinton, Daschle, Kerry, Edwards, Biden, Reid, etc. — would uncritically support the attack on Iraq when it had no legitimate basis. I could not believe that they would be moral cowards when American honor and the lives of thousands were hanging in the balance. I could not believe that congressional Democrats would betray our Constitution by failing to implement the mandatory checks-and-balances on executive power and by failing to check the Bush drive to war and death.”
– SCAM
so-called “Austin Mayor”
http://austinmayor.blogspot.com
March 27th, 2008 at
Unlike Hillary, you’re man enough to admit you were wrong.
March 27th, 2008 at
It wasn’t an I told you so as much as pointing out the flaw in my thinking. Even if you thought that there was a threat from Iraq or whatever excuse they are using today to justify the invasion, the fact that this administration would have fucked it up anyway should have crossed my mind.
And why I won’t let myself off the hook–Bob Graham told us all it was bullshit and he read the report.
The only thing I will give myself credit for is that at least I can admit I fucked up. I’m stunned by how many of the morons in Congress cannot even do that.
March 27th, 2008 at
I wrote that before I read LWC’s comment btw
March 27th, 2008 at
I’m in the same boat, and I wrote about it here:
http://gapersblock.com/airbags/archives/4000/
I wish I could use my Assyrian-ness as an excuse, but I can’t.
March 27th, 2008 at
What infuriates me is that Durbin knew it was bullshit but he couldn’t BY LAW say so (he had the clearance to know what was going on but couldn’t say anything because it came from committee). All he could do was vote against AUMF and ask others to accept what he knew. I called his office to bitch about that…told them they needed to change the laws.
If a lawmaker knows something but can’t say anything, what is the point of having those in the know KNOWING??
March 31st, 2008 at
Oh Larry, don’t feel bad. I went through a brief undecided period before it began, too. Mostly because I couldn’t wrap my head around the idea of Colin Powell either being a big effing liar or too stupid to know the difference. I still can’t work that business out in my brain.
April 1st, 2008 at
I’m a liberal. I hate being right so much of the goddamn time. Why can’t I be wrong? Why can’t the other sides’ intentions be good once in a while? But, when I assume the worst, half the time I’m not even halfway there. (Remember, in the 70s, when we scurrilously charged that Nixon was bombing Cambodia? Turns out he actually had ground troops there, which none of us suspected.)
I do admire your open apology, A.P. You are easily forgiven. Add to the morons in Congress the media punditry, who still claim we should listen to them and their cogent analysis, not the likes of you.