Say It

It’s perverse comedy to see George Bush remain steadfast in the face of evidence.

In October, Bush warned about the prospect of WWIII with regards to Iran. With Iraq, WMDs were tied with mentions of “mushroom clouds.” His administration has escalating rhetoric down to a science. I know because we can smell our own. But the biggest difference is that with me, dramatic rhetoric is a joke, with them it represents delusion.

A few days ago, the National Intelligence Estimate report, representing a consensus of all US spy agencies, said that Iran had halted its nuclear program 4 years ago.

I was curious to see how Bush would handle this. The Dec. 4 White House Press Conference:

“I still feel strongly that Iran is a danger. Nothing has changed in this NIE that says, okay, why don't we just stop worrying about it. Quite the contrary. I think the NIE makes it clear that Iran needs to be taken seriously as a threat to peace. My opinion hasn't changed.”

My reponse to Mr. Bush:

I am more concerned with whether a sworn enemy of the U.S. has a nuclear bomb than whether you have or ever will change your mind about anything. They don't have it so take a few days off and go to your ranch. Let’s chill with the rhetoric. Oh, by the way, it’s ok to change your mind in light of new information. It's called grown-up behavior. Let’s say you went to Sizzler’s thinking you wanted the salad bar and you told Laura how badly you wanted to eat from the all-you-can-eat salad bar, but you noticed that they just introduced a steak and all-you-can-eat shrimp plate and you also get the cheese bread. It’s ok to get the steak and shrimp. You can change your mind.

Obama’s response:

“The juxtaposition of this N.I.E. with the president’s suggestion of World War III serves as an important reminder of what we learned with the 2002 National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq,” said Senator Barack Obama, Democrat of Illinois, in a statement. “Members of Congress must carefully read the intelligence before giving the president any justification to use military force.”