“My friend said, ‘I’m for the UN and international law, and I think you’ve become a traitor to the left. A neocon!’
I said, ‘I’m for overthrowing tyrants, and since when did overthrowing fascism become treason to the left?’
‘But isn’t George Bush himself a fascist, more or less? I mean-admit it!’
My own eyes widened. ‘You haven’t the foggiest idea what fascism is,’ I said. ‘I always figured that a keen awareness of extreme oppression was the deepest trait of a left-wing heart. Mass graves, three hundred thousand missing Iraqis, a population crushed by thirty-five years of Baathist boots stomping on their faces-that is what fascism means! And you think that a few corrupt insider contracts with Bush’s cronies at Halliburton and a bit of retrograde Bible-thumping and Bush’s ridiculous tax cuts and his bonanzas for the super-rich are indistinguishable from that?-indistinguishable from fascism? From a politics of slaughter? Leftism is supposed to be a reality principle. Leftism is supposed to embody an ability to take in the big picture. The traitor to the left is you, my friend…'” – Paul Berman, fighting for sanity, in Dissent.
QUOTE OF THE DAY II: “In a world where we know others are seeking WMD, the likelihood at some point in the future of a seller and a buyer meeting up would have made [Iraq] a far more dangerous country than even we anticipated with what may turn out not to be a fully accurate estimate,” – David Kay, honest hawk.
QUOTE FOR THE DAY III: “Criticising the conduct of US and British policy towards Iraq is legitimate, as is disquiet about the effectiveness of the two countries’ intelligence operations. But impugning the honourable motives of those who sought to defend their countries, by dealing with a threat they believed they could not ignore, is not.” – The Financial Times, yesterday.
CLASSIC KERRY: Noam Scheiber unearths two constituent letters John Kerry wrote before the first gulf War. Kerry’s position? Pro and anti. Just like this time. Can you imagine if he actually has to make a call as president?
The Dish 