Philocrites

The case for a different war.

by Philocrites

Slate's Chris Suellentrop takes a close look at the book that convinced a lot of liberals that war with Iraq was the best of a lot of bad options, Kenneth Pollack's The Threatening Storm. The assessment? Pollack's case for war "reads as much like an indictment of the Bush administration's overeagerness to go to war as it does an endorsement of it."

The Threatening Storm demonstrates that you don't have to be pro-Bush to be pro-war. Think that Bush should focus on al-Qaida before Saddam? So does Pollack. Think that Bush should make a more serious effort to reduce the violence between Israelis and Palestinians before invading Iraq? So does Pollack. Think Bush's linkage of al-Qaida and Saddam is facile and unconvincing? So does Pollack. Fearful that Bush's endorsement of the "pre-emption" doctrine could set a dangerous precedent that other nations might imitate? So is Pollack. Worried that Bush's inattention to the rebuilding of Afghanistan bodes poorly for the reconstruction of Iraq? So is Pollack!

Looking for some solid reviews of Pollack's book? I'd suggest reviews by Brian Urquhart and Joshua Micah Marshall. Marshall, by the way, pretty much sums up our current predicament: "We’re all hostage to the Bush administration’s incompetence, whether we like it or not."

Copyright © 2003 by Philocrites | Posted 6 March 2003 at 1:12 PM

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