Howard Fineman takes a look back at the beginning of the Iraq War, whose “shock and awe” campaign began ten years ago on Wednesday:
There were some reasons to expect success, or at least not to accept the dire warnings against invading Iraq. Bush’s critics had predicted disaster in Afghanistan, but in the first year or two after Operation Enduring Freedom, it seemed as though the “war lords” of the Bush administration were tough customers who knew what they were doing.
On the other hand, American ignorance of the Arab and Muslim worlds 10 years ago was alarmingly vast. More than ignorance, there was fear, prejudice and propaganda…
As for me, I could say that I was covering politics, not war, and that it wasn’t my job to try to pierce the veil of lies and “precog” justifications of the Bush-Cheney-neocon axis.
But the war was politics. It was a new battle for the president to be seen fighting as he headed toward a reelection run. I should have known more, studied more, asked more questions and been more skeptical.
I hope I am wiser now. I hope we all are.
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