Criminal Diplomacy

I'm afraid that our diplomatic efforts have moved from being negligent and incompetent to being criminal. I base this statement in part on an article that was sent to me by Martha, the coordinator of a great listserv (Democracy). The article, from Esquire magazine entitled The Secret History of the Impending War with Iran That the White House Doesn't Want You to Know, confirms the base vileness and evil that is embodied in the actions of Bush & Cheney. As reported by two highly reliable sources that both worked inside the Bush administration (Flynt Leverett and Hillary Mann), Bush/Cheney have been planning for a war with Iran since before the 2000 election when the Supreme Court chose Bush to be the president (talk about judicial activism). According to both Leverett and Mann, the Iranian government made overtures to assist the U.S. in the fight against terrorism and were rebuked. Moreover these offers of assistance from Iran were ignored by the BushCo administration further insulting a regime that is known for its influencial role in the Middle East.

In direct contradiction to representations made by this administration, we had been purposefully and gainfully talking with Iran throughout the two years that followed 9/11 and were on the verge of a breakthrough with the leadership of Iran when Stephen Hadley called Colin Powell and told him to reject an offer that Iran was dangling before our eyes. Thereby, not only embarrassing Powell, but also setting the stage for a much more antagonistic relationship between BushCo and Iran, one that seems inexorably to be leading us to war. This is the very definition of evil - a person or institution or government that would choose antagonism over cooperation knowing that the results of that choice would lead to untold death and destruction.

That is, I'm sad to report, the criminal state of our foreign policy under the Bush/Cheney administration. We are not seeking to broker peace with the rest of the world (Muslim and otherwise), but instead we are actively looking for ways to thwart any progress that might forestall a rush to war. Please read the article and let me know if you disagree with my assertion.

Also, Mrs. Mann Leverett was on Keith Olbermann's show tonight discussing (as much as she is able) the situation that seems to be leading us into yet another unnecessary and illegal attack on a country that has done nothing to us. I have my own cynical rationale for why an administration would choose war over peace, and it has much to do with GREED, the old profit margin, the bottom line, MONEY. Halliburton, KRB, Blackwater and other defense industries are making huge sums of money off these wars. This is a situation I personally find obscene. The fact that Congress is about to give Bush another blank check to prosecute his occupation of Iraq and all the while keeping his options open for an attack on Iran, I find to be immoral and insane. May I remind readers that one accepted definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again yet expecting different results each time? According to this definition what Bush/Cheney (for they are one monster in my eyes) are doing is a textbook example of insanity.

To read about other diplomatic crimes, this one concerning Pakistan, please see Fred Kaplan's article in Slate: The Freedom Agenda Fizzles How George Bush and Condoleezza Rice made a mess of Pakistan.

We must as a people find a way to STOP the MADNESS. Bush/Cheney must be impeached or at the very least criminally prosecuted when they leave office. Please visit American Friends Service Committee to find out how you can work for peace. Thank you and good night.