Obligatory 9/11 Post

"Unless you were there in a position of responsibility after September 11th you cannot possibly imagine the dilemmas you faced trying to protect Americans... If you were there in a position of authority and watched Americans jump out of 80-story buildings because these murderous tyrants went after innocent people, then you were determined to do anything you could--that was legal--to prevent that from happening again."

Condoleezza Rice, speaking with students at a Stanford dorm (4/27/09)

I don't doubt her for a second and can only begin to sympathize with the administration's task in the uncertain wake of 9/11.  Had I spent my first 8 months in a position of responsibility derisively ignoring Richard Clarke and his leftover band of hawkish bin Laden hunters, or received an August 6 briefing titled "Bin Laden Determined to Strike in US," I too may have tried desperately to overcompensate for my negligence.   

I haven't seen a remotely plausible 9/11 conspiracy theory.  The Humean in me fingers a combination of bad luck and incompetence as the culprit.  There were opportunities to smother bin Laden in the cradle--most of them under Clinton (due to his administration's threat prioritization). There was no option for Bush but to invade Afghanistan after 9/11, to dismantle al Qaeda's training infrastructure at the very least.

But Charles Bronson syndrome set in.  We had been mortally wronged and were now morally justified to do just about anything in retaliation.  Tyrants only understand force.  They hate our freedom.  I stand for 7 hours a day.  We do not torture ;-).  Two security checks in every airport and an American boot in every terrorist ass.  Precision-guided democracy reigning down on the liberated.  

Which leads us to the second half of Condi's discussion with a group of teenagers:        

"The President instructed us that nothing we would do would be outside of our obligations, legal obligations, under the convention against torture...The United States was told, we were told 'nothing that violates our obligations in the convention against torture,' and so by definition, if it was authorized by the President, it did not violate our obligations under the convention against torture."

I know she's speaking extempore, but read that again.  This woman was provost of Stanford, accompanied Yo-Yo Ma, stood in Kissinger's shoes, held a prominent position at Chevron, speaks far better Russian than I do, holds multiple advanced degrees, and couldn't make the debate team at the school she used to run.  

I can't believe people like this ran my country.

Watch the whole goddamned thing here.