Colin Powell

Interesting interview with Powell:
http://abcnews.go.com/2020/Politics/story?id=1105979&page=1

 

Yes, he clearly makes the case that everything that he said, and that Bush said, were clearly backed by U.S. Intelligence. No one was trying to lie or mislead, they were going with the information that they had.

If anything, this is a vindication of the Bush policy.

BLD

 

A vindication????

Amazing the way that the conservative mind works sometimes....

OK - here's a similar scenario.

1. I get information from my subordinates that one of our information systems should be converted to run on MacIntosh computers, even though I have a gut feeling we need more information to make this decision (and it is inherently ridiculous, given the market share of Macs in the world these days).

2. My subordinate calls a consultant in (who happens to be his brother-in-law, unbeknownst to me) and verifies everything that my subordinate just told me. We HAVE to buy those Macs!

3. I get the cost estimates together, assuming I'm not being misled, and go to my college president and tell him what we need to do. He buys in, reluctantly.

4. I implement the system and it is a total screwup, and two weeks later the college president brings in his consulting buddies and they tell him that Macs are dead, and where did we get the idea that going to Macs was ever a good idea?

5. Guess whose ass is on the line here?

But, in your way of thinking, the misinformation and acting upon it without further verification on my part is actually a "vindication" of my decision!

I'm so glad to learn this! I'll make sure to apply it in my future business decisions. Just claim ignorance, rely on faulty information, screw up, and then claim "vindication" because at least we acted on what we THOUGHT was the right thing to do - despite all gut feelings and a tremendous mass of public knowledge and sentiment to the contrary.

 

Carl,
Your analogy is so absolutely one-sided (as you're well aware) that it has no relevance whatsoever.

BLD

 

Carl,

Nice analogy. However, if I were another person in authority, Imagine I run to the college president and say "Carl is a liar". He lied to you, he lied to the university, he lied to the students. He misled you because he has friends that work for Apple and he did all this to line the pockets of his buddies.

You start taking heat from every corner of the university. The university newspaper does endless articles about your deceit, your untrustworthiness, and your total inability to even turn on a computer, much less determine a strategy.

College professors begin to make fun of you, you become the butt-end of campus jokes, and the credibility of the entire university IT department is being called into question. Other universities that used to invite you to speak on advancements in IT, now will not even return your calls.

This goes on for over a year, then the guys on your staff (your subordinates) write a report to the university president saying that you acted in good faith based on the information they provided. You, as a manager, relied on their research and conclusions to make the recommendation. The report was distributed to every university and printed in thier campus newspapers.

You wouldn't feel a little bit vindicated?

 

Carl and Kansas have excellent analogies. I think Colin Powell is one of the most honorable men ever in the Bush administration. I think he was caught up in all of the deception. I do think that Cheney was the primary deceptor to this nation and should be treated as the treasonous POS that he is.

 

Honest answer? Yes!

Good points Michael

 

I don't think I'd be so quick to point the finger at Mr. Cheney. He is an absolutely great guy...I worked for him for a couple of years while I was in the service. It's funny how some folks seem to think that this WMD talk started with this Bush administration...This WMD "threat" was conveyed to me over and over again while I was in the service. It started with Bush Senior and continued on with Slick Willie...and they were all relying on the same intel. Funny how no one seems to remember that. My entire military career seemed to revolve around that threat (from boot camp in 1990 until the time I left in 98).

 

Though I'm not a "Bush II fan", I agree with all your points BDev.... you're absolutely correct on every single item (including that Cheney is a great guy - I know of him too through other colleagues who say the same thing, despite his more recent public reputation as a total dickhead....).

 

Being "caught up in all of the deception" doesn't bode well for Mr. Powell, does it?

I mean he is an intelligent man who has the ability to wade through all the materials presented and come to a logical and reasonable conclusion on his own, can he not?

I like Colin Powell. I just think he simply believed all the intelligence--the same intelligence Clinton and Kerry believed.

The most effective, intelligent person in the Bush administration is Secretary of State Rice.

 

bipartisan witz

And she's the only one of the lot of 'em who can figure skate. (GOP version)
And she's the only one of the lot of 'em who can figure. (?Dem version)

 

Re: bipartisan witz

And she's a classical pianist.

 

Thanks, Carl. I think GWII and DC are trying to do the "good cop" "bad cop" thing. DC helped me out alot when I was in the service so...whether I trust GWII or not, I trust DC.

I also believe that Colin believed what he was saying. I think Condi is a brilliant woman but Colin is no slouch either. I'm glad he's standing by what he said/did (that's just another "plus" for him).