9/11, The Last Refuge of a Certain Scoundrel

Bill Kristol has labeled Senators Domenici, Lugar, Voinovich, and our very own (and Kristol's, too, I think) Warner as "pre-9/11 Republicans." If Karl Rove is Bush's brain, we should remember that Bill Kristol was Dan Quayle's brain. It's also instructive to remember that the Weekly Standard is Rupert Murdoch's attempt to put a pseudo-intellectual face on neoconservatism. Finally, we should remember that neoconservatism is nothing more than a fancy way of saying "might makes right." Check out what Straussians have to say about the noble lie. It is true, as Kristol writes, that our soldiers' sacrifices should be acknowledged. It is nonsense, however, for him to wrap himself in their courage, especially as he attacks politicians who actually put themselves up for re-election every six years. What penalty has Kristol paid for being consistently wrong in his policy recommendations? I imagine that Murdoch's checks have been consistently coming all these years. Moreover, what the hell does "pre-9/11" as a perjorative even mean? Lots of very sensible things were done in the aftermath of 9/11, from increased airport security to better intelligence coordination among previously stove-piped agencies. Of course, much remains to be done, like stepping up port and border security. Additionally, much foolishness (airline bans on liquids) and deviousness (the Patriot Act) was foisted on us in the wake of our fear. Nothing, however, was more foolish or more devious than invading and occupying Iraq. Long before 9/11, Kristol and the other armchair warriors were recommending using our military to "solve" the Middle East. It has been proven in the writings of O'Neill, Woodward, and Tenet that the opportunity 9/11 presented to get rid of Saddam was openly debated by Bush and Cheney by 9/12 at the latest. Given all we know now about the deceit that put us in Iraq, the incompetence that has failed to prevent the civil war now engulfing Iraq, and the sheer absurdity that every day we delay in orderly withdrawing from Iraq makes us less safe, to hide behind 9/11 is truly the last refuge of the scoundrel named Kristol.