Deceptions
A couple of important stories out today: Senate committee: Bush knew Iraq claims weren’t true and more information on our permanent bases in Iraq.
The first isn’t anything new. We’ve known that the White House ignored whatever information wasn’t useful to their case for war. That meant ignoring consensus on al Qaeda-Iraq ties and ignoring significant dissent over uranium from Africa. A significant portion of their case was based on some evidence, so it’s hard to say they were lying (about all of it, anyway). Still, twisting the facts to make the case for an invasion that would cost significant loss of life is intolerable.
The second story is also not surprising, but still worth mentioning. Our presence in the Middle East drives terrorist recruitment. When we choose our excursions wisely (Afghanistan, for now) the benefits (a weakened and scattered al Qaeda) outweigh the costs (anger over our presence and civilian deaths). When we don’t, well, we get Iraq. Neocon fantasies about an Iraq that loves us and helps us in the region aren’t reality. Our presence there is toxic.
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