The Bush administration’s latest story line about Iraq – that Iran is now the primary problem there – should be greeted with profound skepticism. Not only is it the latest in a series of rationales for U.S. involvement in Iraq, most of which have turned out to be based on flawed intelligence, misrepresentations or outright dishonesty. But there are at least two illegitimate reasons why the White House would want the American public to see Iran as a threat right now.
One is that President Bush needs a definable, demonizable enemy for public-relations purposes, to take attention away from the reality that U.S. troops remain perilously and indefinitely astride several civil wars and resistance movements.
And the other is that the White House – or at least the Cheney faction within it – is still eager to do something definitive to curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions before the end of Bush’s term. With a preemptive strike off the table, advocates of a military attack could be looking for a provocation they could turn into a casus belli.
And so, nothing these people say at this point should be taken at face value – even when it’s supported by military officials on the ground. Many sincere people with plausible-sounding assessments have turned out to be selling a bill of goods when it comes to Iraq…
In Group Therapy, there are a variety of roles that emerge as a group progresses. One is the so-called "truth-sayer" – a person that ignores the unspoken communications that some topics are off-limits, and simply says the truth, the "whole truth." Such people are both invaluable to the group and personally vulnerable – often coming under attack. So, as a group therapist, one is often in a position of protecting such a group member. But sometimes, the "truth-sayer" is strong enough [and smart enough] to go it on their own.
To me, Dan Froomkin is such a person – and this article is a perfect example of why. This emergence of Iran Bashing is transparent, but the rest of us talk around it. We argue against the data, or the motives, etc. Dan Froomkin just says it in a few paragraphs:
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They’ve done this before, and it’s turned out to be lies.
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They’re doing it to avoid criticism for the true state of their war.
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Cheney is still a war-monger who wants to bomb Iran.
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Don’t listen to them.
The "whole truth; nothing but the truth." We owe Dan Froomkin a great debt if this madness ever ends. He’s held his position as a "truth-sayer" in America’s Newspaper of record through all of this insanity – parsing the smoke screen day after day.
As for the topic, The Campaign to Bomb Iran, they’re going to have to find a way to go it alone. The people don’t want it [people don’t believe what they’re saying]; it’s a terrible idea; it’s a hostile parting shot; and Congress doesn’t want it. I would anticipate that if they find some provocation that allows them to give it a shot, they’ll find themselves under an attack that will finally expose them and their friends to ridicule at the least, and perhaps much more. It would amount to Treason in my way of understanding – deliberately betraying America. And our man Dan is saying it right out loud in the Washington Post…
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