Advice For Mort Zuckerman: ‘Bite Your Tongue’
Advice For Mort Zuckerman: ‘Bite Your Tongue’
Mortimer B. Zuckerman, editor-in-chief of the U.S. News & World Report, argues this week that it’s “Too Soon to Leave,” his latest installment on getting things wrong on Iraq over and over again.
Zuckerman’s main argument is that things could get really bad if U.S. troops leave Iraq “too soon,” failing to recognize that things are extremely awful already.
Zuckerman’s latest op-ed strikes a familiar tone. At the end of 2005, he said we were turning a corner in Iraq:
Indeed, what a foolish time to talk of getting out, just when we are getting our act together with the accelerated and improved training of Iraqi troops, and just before an election when Shiites and Sunnis are working to form the sort of institutions required to build a nation and quell the low-level civil war.
Before the war, he supported the invasion by falsely connecting Saddam Hussein’s secular regime to the problems of Islamist extremists like Al Qaeda, and he shamelessly misused the 9/11 attacks throughout 2004 and 2005 to mindlessly cheerlead for President Bush’s failed strategy.
Enough’s enough. A month after the invasion, Zuckerman wrongly predicted, “Those who were so confident that America would mess up the war are now equally assured that America will mess up the peace, but all of them should be prepared to bite their tongues.”
It’s time for Zuckerman to take some of his own advice and stop writing on Iraq — his credibility is shot, and no one should care anymore what he has to say.
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Things are ALREADY bad.
May 15th, 2007 at 9:19 pmAnd then they wonder why subscriptions are down!
May 15th, 2007 at 9:24 pmPhoto was taken at the Tikrit black tie invitational ball. He is such a classy guy. Bow tie is made of Kevlar. he is not stupid of course.
May 15th, 2007 at 9:24 pmI don’t care.
May 15th, 2007 at 9:26 pmJust another fool who has hitched his wagon to the wrong horse and can’t get it unhitched.
May 15th, 2007 at 9:26 pmZuckerman the ISRAELI Patriot?
…aww he’s just protecting that RETIREMENT Villa of his…
…in Haifa…
May 15th, 2007 at 9:27 pmLike Nascar, continious turns are just big circles, circle jerk’s is what this administration is…Impeach them all…Blessings
May 15th, 2007 at 9:28 pm“when Shiites and Sunnis are working to form the sort of institutions required to build a nation and quell the low-level civil war”
Muqtada Al-Sadr controls the largest Shiite block, and is extraordinarily anti-American. Al-Hashimi, the Vice President, controls the Sunni block, and is threatening to pull out of the Iraqi government.
May 15th, 2007 at 9:30 pmMuqtada Al-Sadr controls the largest Shiite block, and is extraordinarily anti-American. Al-Hashimi, the Vice President, controls the Sunni block, and is threatening to pull out of the Iraqi government.
Comment by Chris L — May 15, 2007 @ 9:30 pm
But other than that, things are going so well… we got those WMD’s, Osama, Freedom for their people, Walmart and Starbucks in every city, 2 million have fled, 1 million probably dead, trillions in debt, 1000’s of soldiers will return with no arms, legs, limbs, or self worth, we torture, we spy on peaceful activists, we lie about the economy, we allow 12 million illegals to enter this country. Oh and we’re paying$3.20+ for a gallon of gas, when the Iraqi gas was to pay for it all.. HAHAHA..
This is the America I’m supposed to be proud of? And the idiots on the right think we’re hateful, goddamn right we’re hateful. The GOP and their supporters have turned America into a country hated 2nd to only Nazi Germany, and we’ll take first by the time Bush is out of office.
Way to go team Terror! We showed the world true American Christian Values.
May 15th, 2007 at 9:41 pmThe Washington Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Time, US News & World Report, Fox News….The list goes on and on!
What a terrific job the neocons have done over the last 30+ years. They have the whole media establishment eating out of their hands. This was key for their success in elections and with all they have done since 2000. The invasion and occupation (not the war, folks, there is no war!) would never have happened without the media being a shill. Nor would Bush have been elected.
Thanks for the blogs that are helping to change this situation around.
May 15th, 2007 at 9:41 pmI have finally gotten around to reading David Halberstam’s incisive The Best and the Brightest and Zuckerman’s statements could have come directly from the mouth of Walt Rostow or Robert McNamara or McGeorge Bundy. Claiming that leaving Iraq would be too soon or that the U.S. has supposedly turned a corner is what was said almost verbatim over forty years ago concerning a country called Vietnam. There is almost no time in the twentieth century that an invading army was able to defeat an indigeneous force, as proven in Vietnam, and it is extremely doubtful if Iraq will prove to be the exception.
May 15th, 2007 at 9:52 pm#9 Comment by Can-O-Whoop-Ass — May 15, 2007 @ 9:41 pm
Oh and we’re paying$3.20+ for a gallon of gas, when the Iraqi gas was to pay for it all.. HAHAHA..
Yeah, this was Wolfowitz talking before the invasion (there is no war, folks). And you can see where that got him! President of the World Bank. Isn’t it ironic that what is bringing him down is an affair. Clinton must be rolling on the floor laughing. And now Wolfie is blaming HER! Even Clinton didn’t stoop that low.
May 15th, 2007 at 9:55 pmTurn the corner!
Its too soon!
Stay the course!
May 15th, 2007 at 9:56 pmIt’s too late!
Remember this bastard come Judgment Day! Enough said.
May 15th, 2007 at 9:57 pmCaption contest; I wanted to rent the OGM (Organ Grinding Monkey suit)… but it was already taken.
May 15th, 2007 at 9:57 pmZuckerman is a rightwing Zionist. This from Juan Cole at Informed Comment:
May 15th, 2007 at 9:59 pmDeputy National Security Council adviser Elliott Abrams, a convicted perjurer who should not be holding high office, let slip recently that the Bush administration is not actually doing anything on the Arab-Israeli peace process, and any appearance that it is is just for show, to mollify the outraged Europeans and Middle Easterners (i.e. everyone in the world outside rightwing Zionists, whether Jewish or Christian).
Don’t hold your breath ,our so called liberal media still find this jackass(Zuckerman)as lucent,he is on countless tv shows spewing bs that continuously turns out to be incorrect.Only in America
May 15th, 2007 at 10:00 pmSuckerman is yet another neocon asshat who has traded reality for a fantasy world…and wonders why a majority of Americans don’t agree with him.
May 15th, 2007 at 10:02 pmCaption contest:
“You’ll never guess what I just cleaned up with my hanky”
May 15th, 2007 at 10:09 pm‘Zuckerman’s main argument is that things could get really bad if U.S. troops leave Iraq “too soon,†failing to recognize that things are extremely awful already.’
Actually, Zuckerman lays out quite bluntly how bad the situation is in Iraq now:
“[W]e thought we would create the conditions for a viable state, even a democratic one. In a troubled region, it would be a state that would not be a threat to us or our friends. What we have instead is a failed state. It cannot protect its people or apply the rule of law. Its lamentable leadership is powerless to govern. We now face the possibility of an even greater danger from Iraq than existed when Saddam Hussein was its ruler. We have removed a terrible dictator but replaced him with the tyranny of the Shiites.”
May 15th, 2007 at 10:18 pmThis just on from Captain Obvious:
Mr Zuckerman, the position of Captain Obvious is not to be cheapened by imitations. Oh and take some responsibility for your own part as a cheerleader and stop blaming the victims…
May 15th, 2007 at 10:35 pmThis just on from Captain Obvious:
This should, of course, read ‘in’ and not ‘on’…. er, obviously.
May 15th, 2007 at 10:43 pmMort is just a Neocon wannabee, so ignore his stupid rants on Iraq.
May 15th, 2007 at 10:46 pmThis just in from Captain Obvious:
Ideas for a bumper sticker: “Dude, I voted to invade Iraq and all I got was this lousy Shiite theocracy”
May 15th, 2007 at 10:52 pmwhat do you expect from zionist hawk. who loves to watch american blood and treasure being spent in the name of israel.
May 15th, 2007 at 11:02 pmever notice it’s always old white guys?
May 15th, 2007 at 11:44 pmWhy should Zuckerman care? The only sacrifice he’s had to make during the past six years is paying much lower taxes, courtesy of W and Cheney’s tax cuts as part of their “Leave No Billionaire Behind” program.
May 16th, 2007 at 12:06 amActually, Zuckerman lays out quite bluntly how bad the situation is in Iraq now:[...]
Comment by Exley — May 15, 2007 @ 10:18 pm
Yes, he lays it out rather bluntly but he uses it as a rhetorical prop to buttress his argument that the US shouldn’t leave Iraq. Take this paragraph, for example:
It might be argued that my sketch is overdrawn, that Iraqis will learn to live together and deal in their own way with alien terrorists. But if they can’t do that when supported by the world’s most powerful military, what chances are there when they are left on their own? And even if there is a smaller probability of the horrific consequences I have suggested, it still remains a chance that can’t be taken. The concern to bring the troops home and reduce our casualties is wholly understandable, but the risks make it impossible right now.
The rest of the comment is not much different because it is actually an argument in favor of continuing the occupation of Iraq. In a nutshell, what Zuckerman says is: If you think Iraq is in a bad shape now, wait until we withdraw.
Really, you should have kept reading beyond the paragraphs that seemed to agree with whatever point you wanted to make. Defending the people who got it wrong -and still get it wrong- doesn’t quite speak well of you.
May 16th, 2007 at 1:07 amThis is gonna look bad on the Republican resume.
May 16th, 2007 at 6:45 am—-
Indeed, what a foolish time to talk of getting out, just when we are getting our act together with the accelerated and improved training of Iraqi troops
—-
Get your ass over there warmonger. You talk the talk, but do you walk the walk?
- Tom
May 16th, 2007 at 7:34 amShut the piehole, Suckerman!
May 16th, 2007 at 8:13 amWe’re always just about to turn a corner in Iraq. Well, if you keep turning corners, what you’re really doing is going into a downward spiral.
May 16th, 2007 at 9:25 amI realize Mort Zuckerman is far more important ….but I can hardly wait to read how “TP and gang” spin the CRUSHING defeat of Russ Feingold’s latest legilative masterpiece???
“The Senate on Wednesday rejected legislation that would cut off money for combat operations in Iraq after March 31, 2008.
The vote was a loss for Sen. Russell Feingold, D-Wis., and other Democrats who want to end the war. But the effort picked up support from members, including presidential hopefuls previously reluctant to limit war funding, an indication of the conflict’s unpopularity among voters.
The proposal lost 29-67 on a procedural vote, falling 31 votes short of the necessary votes to advance. (emphasis added)
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, a Democratic presidential front-runner, previously opposed setting a deadline on the war. But she said she agreed to back the measure “because we, as a united party, must work together with clarity of purpose and mission to begin bringing our troops home and end this war.â€
Sen. Barack Obama, another leading 2008 prospect, said he would prefer a plan that offers more flexibility but wanted “to send a strong statement to the Iraqi government, the president and my Republican colleagues that it’s long past time to change course.â€
May 16th, 2007 at 12:06 pm#31 Comment by valiant venus — May 16, 2007 @ 12:06 pm
“I realize Mort Zuckerman is far more important ….but I can hardly wait to read how “TP and gang†spin the CRUSHING defeat of Russ Feingold’s latest legilative masterpiece???”
OK Valient, here is a serious response (spin if you prefer.) as opposed to playing the game.
You talk as if Reid-Feingold was expected to pass or come close to passing. This is not the case at all. It was expected to fail by everyone, and you know that. It was clearly understood that no Republican votes would be “yes”. The question from progressives was how many votes would it get on the Democratic side. There are many Dems that need to be convinced that we need to leave Iraq now. This bill was part of that effort. As opposed to the current Republican senators, party loyalty does not trump personal belief and duty to constituancy. Democrats always appear, and often are, divided. This is natural and is the nature of the Democratic (and democratic) beast.
May 16th, 2007 at 2:10 pmThe number of yes votes was more than the 11 cosponsors it had, reaching 29. Considering that this bill was considered extreme by just about everybody, when it was first proposed, the vote today is not even close to the “crushing” defeat you would like to believe it was. It achieved its purpose to push toward the goal. That purpose is to leave Iraq, and one way or the other we will leave. (It is even remotely possible, though 99% doubtful, that Bush will do it, if it is politically expedient.) This bill is just one part of the effort to bring our troops home sooner rather than later. Sadly, there is much work to be done yet to stop the carnage, pain and suffering our foreign policy has created.
Merlin – your spin doesn’t square with what the American people were told when the Dems took the Congress. Is your apologizing for American foreign policy code for “None of this would be happening if the US didn’t support Israel?” Just curious……
May 16th, 2007 at 6:59 pm#33 Comment by valiant venus — May 16, 2007 @ 6:59 pm
Merlin – your spin doesn’t square with what the American people were told when the Dems took the Congress.
This is an overly broad statement that is way to vague to comment on. You would have to be specific for me to research my answer. I don’t memorize details but instead look them up before I comment. I don’t like to shoot from the hip. It does neither of us any good.
That said, there is enough “politics” and backroom stuff going on, (that we don’t know about,) that you probably could make the case both ways in both camps. Unless there is a serious pattern of deceit etc., I find the usual arguments between us folks observing the scene, is rather like the parable of the cave. There, the people could only see the shadows of things passing in front of the cave opening, and had great discussions about what was making those shadows on the wall. To me, it is all “time consuming” pastime fun and not much more. You, no doubt, have noticed I never take part in these kind of detailed discussions. My emphasis is on the big picture.
Is your apologizing for American foreign policy…
I am not apologizing for anything. Do you believe I need to apologize for something? If so, what? If any apologizing is to be done it should come from BushCo. The responsibility rests with them for this invasion and current occupation.
…code
I don’t speak or write in code. If you have read my serious posts here you know that I am as straight and clear as I can be in what I say. I say what I feel, think and believe at the moment. If I find I am wrong I have no trouble “flip flopping” and admitting that I was wrong and that I have made a mistake. I must be convinced of that, however. Emerson said it well in his essay on self reliance. I try to follow that approach.
…for “None of this would be happening if the US didn’t support Israel?†Just curious……
I did not mention Israel and did not think it was pertinent to my answer. What I said in my post was it, nothing hidden or implied. Reread my post, it is very clear. If you do not find it so, tell me where I have been vague or misleading and I will do what I can to be more clear.
May 17th, 2007 at 3:34 am