Letters to the Editor
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Book Should Have Been Called
Sorry Excuses for Humans (in other words: WEASELS) At The Top, Including Me by George Tenet
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All it Takes for Evil to Prevail
is for good men to do nothing. Or something like that, except that Tenet does not seem like a very good person.
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Tenet's insurgency in its last throes
When it suited Tenet, he sat back and never spoke up for what he claims were untruths which he knew about. Now that he'd like to clear the stench of the non-existent mushroom cloud, he comes forward. Too little too late. Last night, he came across as petulant, scolding Pelley rather than taking responsibility for his own cowardice.
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Very late? No. Too late.
The long lead-up and "surge" during 2002 of the Bush2WH for invasion of Iraq was easy to decipher and by late Jan 2003 know as being very likely indeed. The tone,words and stage-play all pointed to it happening and now G.Tenet is telling his version of how Iraq invasion came about. One can expect more of these tomes of personal salvation seeking and redemption to emerge from others in Bush2WH. Bush2WH history and the Iraq War and Occupation debacle promise it. The list of scandals and cover-up scandals growing longer still these days. Still have most of 2007 and all of 2008 gamut to run. G.Tenet is heading up a long parade to come.
We know from just the main outlines of 20th century warmongery and strong man political leader descents into hell that standing up to it or them was the rare event. We know that Hitler and his Nazis,the Imperial Japanese militarists and of course Stalin or Mao all faced a few who pushed back and questioned the why,what or who parts. Clearly doing so was not likely to greatly extend ones hold on any position of power or life itself. The many millions who died because people like Hitler,the Japanese militarists,Stalin or Mao were able to deal out death on massive scales are the real victims of muted,deferred or postponed pushback.
Many hundreds of thousands of dead,maimed or refugee Iraqis now fully document the reckless warmongery of the Bush2WH. That D.Cheney,W.Kristol and P.Wolfowitz remain blind to their monstrous lies and actions still an early 21st century tale unfolding. Saddam was no saint and his hands had lots of blood on them. The Iran-Iraq War and the carnage it brought to Iraqis and Iranians in counts of millions was monstrous. But Saddam was a known dictator/tyrant and his acts and deathdealing were central to his rule. The Bush2WH did not ever have clearance to start phoney wars,torture and kill at whim or will and run amok with deceit and deception. Not in 2002,2003 or 2005 or now in early 2007. Saddam is now dead and his legacy is firmly planted. He was ruthless,a killer and his ruination of Iraq for the worst of motives plainly evident. The Bush2Wh,the PNAC types,D.Cheney and his band of warmakers will have a much harder path to follow into the history books.
G.Tenet is a early tell-all out of the Bush2WH regime. Was he spineless or duped? A profile in courage or an enabler of perfidy? There is little evidence of any Tenet pushback when it would have truly mattered or changed how events unfolded. It is truly very late now to be talking about D.Cheney's fact free spin and warmongery desires. Very late? No.Too late.
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Where credit is due(?)
It seems like maybe someone on the editorial staff reads Cat and Girl. This headline seems remarkably close to the punchline of this strip http://www.catandgirl.com/view.php?loc=460, posted last Thursday.
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George Tenet
to a non American, the most appalling aspect of George Tenet's appearance on 60 Minutes was the way he came across like a self conscious character in "24". He even made reference to "plotlines". His emotionalism was terrifying. This "feel my pain" whacker was the head of the CIA under two US Administrations? You guys may as well appoint Kiefer Sutherland and be done with it.
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Tsk tsk Mike!
Though, I may pick up some of the numerous copies that I see in various book stores, page through them briefly and return them discretely to the shelves, possibly with accidentally but conspicuously damaged dust covers.
Now Mike, I know you know better! That will hurt booksellers, not Harper or Tenet.
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George Tenet
Like Juan Cole, I'm outraged by the pusillanimous behavior of George Tenet regarding Iraq. But even that outrage pales when compared to my feelings upon hearing Tenet on "60 Minutes" say he told Condi Rice about the imminent danger from Al Queda:
"In his interview on April 29, Tenet alleged that Rice delegated the issue of immediate action in Afghanistan to "third-tier officials." When pressed as to why he did not go straight to the president, Tenet implied that he did not have the ability to put things on Bush's agenda, while Rice did."
As far as I know, the Director of Central Intelligence has a legal right to go to the President directly. Even if I'm wrong on that, Tenet had a moral and patriotic obligation to go to the President, or even go public to the country, if he believed that there was an imminent threat of an attack with major casulties, and Ms. Rice would not act. That he did not makes him more than just a coward. It's negligent homicide.
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tenet,its interesting now
the menistration has slam dunked him so he decides he will fight back.who fights for the 3325 that are gone? while i`m at it the niger forgery letter had its beginnings in the vice presidents office.very interesting,however most know these things.what are we going to do about them? cheney certainly deserves to be impeach,it just may be the tumor on bush that needs to be cut off.
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I was struck last night by Tenet's apparent lack of genuine emotion ... I was listening rather than watching ...
the man sounded soul-less ... even his outrage and bombast was as modulated as a used-car salesman or civic club functionary (Lion's, Elk's).
In contrast, he made Michael Brown sound engaged and compassionate and ACCOUNTABLE ...
The 4 million advance he got for this book cannot possibly make up for the (quite justified but merciless) savaging of his character ... somehow I was left with the suspicion that his "best quality" was his "flunkiness" and that ultimately he had a flunky middle-manager mindset ... Like Alberto Gonzales ...
Many years ago my father advised me that I was making a common mistake at my job ... he said, "Susan, you think your job is the work you do... but in real life, your job is to make your boss happy." I rolled my eyes in disgust ... assuming that, in my case, healthcare, was somehow different than the movie business my dad worked in. However, my experiences in the intervening 30-plus years is that in MANY job and for many WORKERS, pleasing the boss is Job #1 and that safety and ethical concerns are often viewed as odious "more work" and "unncessary complications" ... cans of worms best ignored.
That standard really should not apply to jobs like ATTORNEY GENERAL or HEAD OF THE CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY, nor should it override other ethical and/or professional responsibilities in any job ... this consciencelessness in "public servants" entrusted with the "common good" is beyond disturbing and reminiscent of that of Nuremberg defendants.
These folks need to be held to account ... for starters, they have violated their oaths of office... and abused the public trust.