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Observations on the world today.

Saturday, June 04, 2005

Hey, Media! Wake up! 

My brother has alerted me to a story that is getting a lot of attention overseas, but prescious little here. This memo was discovered and published in England. It tells of the plotting that was going on between the Bushies and Downing Street in the period building up to the Iraq invasion. Here's the best worst part:
The Defence Secretary said that the US had already begun "spikes of activity" to put pressure on the regime. No decisions had been taken, but he thought the most likely timing in US minds for military action to begin was January, with the timeline beginning 30 days before the US Congressional elections.

The Foreign Secretary said he would discuss this with Colin Powell this week. It seemed clear that Bush had made up his mind to take military action, even if the timing was not yet decided. But the case was thin. Saddam was not threatening his neighbours, and his WMD capability was less than that of Libya, North Korea or Iran. We should work up a plan for an ultimatum to Saddam to allow back in the UN weapons inspectors. This would also help with the legal justification for the use of force.

The Attorney-General said that the desire for regime change was not a legal base for military action. There were three possible legal bases: self-defence, humanitarian intervention, or UNSC authorisation. The first and second could not be the base in this case. Relying on UNSCR 1205 of three years ago would be difficult. The situation might of course change.

(Emphasis mine)
This is ridiculous. Treasonous. Impeachable. Immoral. Know any other good adjectives? Leave them in the comments. Comments defending this behavior will be met with the appropriate level of derision.

Also, kindly sign the petition.

Tuesday, May 31, 2005

What a Strange Day 

First Woodward announces that Deep Throat is dying and his obituary is being written, sparking a round of speculation over which suspect is most ill. Then we learn that a Vanity Fair article has a former FBI guy announcing that Deep Throat is he. Then Bernstein makes a public pronouncement that he will not confirm nor deny the claim since he is honor bound to not betray the secret until Deep Throat expires. Then the WaPo announces that yes, the FBI guy is indeed Deep Throat.

Now if you ask me, there is no way this whole revelation wasn't contrived to keep the news junkies hopping all day. The WaPo must have known that Vanity Fair had this story, and thus their initial announcement about the obit was a tease. And Bernstein must have known that the WaPo was going to confirm the guy's id, so his big noble pronouncement was just a ruse.

At any rate, they made it fun. The guy really is going out with a bang this way. And he deserves it. Say what you will about football stars and TV actors, Deep Throat is a true American Hero with a capital H.

I salute you, W. Mark Felt. And this American thanks you for your service.

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