Sy Hersh's dialogue with Scott Ritter in The Nation is a must read. Ritter, in true Marine fashion, pulls no punches against the entire Federal establishment for its disastrous Iraq policy that has continued from Bush I, to Clinton, to Bush II. Here are some highlights:
1. Continuity - The Iraq policy of regime change is not new and culpability does not lie in the Bush administration alone. Ritter calls for indictments of the Clintonians, Sandy Berger and Madeline Albright. "...[Y]ou indict every person on the Clinton Administration that committed the exact same crime that the Bush Administration has committed today." Continuity of policy should equal a continuity of indictments.
2. Withdrawl: Ritter states there are two reasonable options for what to do going further. Plan A would be to withraw literally today, and Plan B is to withdraw literally tomorrow. Staying is foolish nonsense.
3. Lost Cause: This is what the "perfumed princes" [generals] should be telling the elected officials: "At the end of the day, we've created a nightmare scenario in Iraq, and the best we can do is mitigate failure. And that's what I'm talking, and, unfortunately, that's a politically unacceptable answer. People say, no, we have to win, we have to persevere, there has to be victory. There's not going to be victory." [Please tell that to Pat Buchanan.]
4. Love it or Leave It: While I'm not a fan of "love it or leave it" patriotism, I might be able to accept Ritter's approach. "You know, we got rid of a bad guy. The ends justify the means. And I have to be frank. If there's anybody here who calls themselves a citizen of the United States of America and you endorse the notion of the ends justify the means, submit your passport for destruction and get the hell out of my country."
There's much more, give it a read.
