**No excuse for not reading Mark Danner's "The Secret Way to War"

[BurtWorm]

Including the Secret Downing Street Memo in full:


http://www.nybooks.com/articles/18034


After John Scarlett began the meeting with a summary of intelligence on Iraq—notably, that "the regime was tough and based on extreme fear" and that thus the "only way to overthrow it was likely to be by massive military action," "C" offered a report on his visit to Washington, where he had conducted talks with George Tenet, his counterpart at the CIA, and other high officials. This passage is worth quoting in full:

C reported on his recent talks in Washington. There was a perceptible shift in attitude. Military action was now seen as inevitable. Bush wanted to remove Saddam, through military action, justified by the conjunction of terrorism and WMD. But the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy. The NSC had no patience with the UN route, and no enthusiasm for publishing material on the Iraqi regime's record. There was little discussion in Washington of the aftermath after military action.

Seen from today's perspective this short paragraph is a strikingly clear template for the future, establishing these points:

1. By mid-July 2002, eight months before the war began, President Bush had decided to invade and occupy Iraq.

2. Bush had decided to "justify" the war "by the conjunction of terrorism and WMD."

3. Already "the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy."

4. Many at the top of the administration did not want to seek approval from the United Nations (going "the UN route").

5. Few in Washington seemed much interested in the aftermath of the war.

[rodeodance]

1. and we are dealing with the consequences of no planning NOW

......Few in Washington seemed much interested in the aftermath of the war.

[wtmusic]

4. Just how can one "plan" to deal

with the aftermath of an illegal invasion? The only "plan" would have been no "plan" at all.

[wtmusic]

2. It was earlier, if you buy the TIME story that

Junior poked his head into a national security meeting and said, "Fuck Saddam, we're taking him out." (March 2002)

[BurtWorm]

3. As we know now, one should never ever trust a newsweekly

:eyes:

[wtmusic]

5. *snarf*

:thumbsup:

[wiggs]

7. Even earlier if you believe Kwiatkowski and O'Neill. nt

[BurtWorm]

6. kick

[BurtWorm]

8. kick