AUSTIN, Texas -- The Old War Criminal is back. I try not to
hold grudges, but I must admit I have never lost one ounce of
rancor toward Henry Kissinger, that cynical, slithery,
self-absorbed pathological liar. He has all the loyalty and
principle of Charles Talleyrand, whom Napoleon described as "a
piece of dung in a silk stocking."
Come to think of it, Talleyrand looks pretty good compared to
Kissinger, who always aspired to be Metternich (a 19th century
Austrian diplomat). Just count the number of Americans and
Vietnamese who died between 1969 and 1973, and see if you can
find any indication he ever gave a damn.
As for Kissinger's getting the Nobel Peace Prize, it is a
thing so wrong it has come to define wrongness -- as in, "As
weird as the time Henry Kissinger got the Nobel Peace Prize."
Tom Lehrer, who was a lovely political satirist, gave up
satire after that blow.
The War Criminal's return is the only piece of news I have yet
found in Bob Woodward's new book, and what amazes me is the
reaction to the work. Gosh, gasp, imagine, Woodward says the
war's a disaster!
People who know a lot more than Bob Woodward have been saying
the war's a disaster for years -- because war is
self-evidently a disaster. Why this is greeted as an
annunciation from on high just because Woodward, the world's
most establishment reporter, now says so is a mystery to me.
I have read snippets here and there suggesting the
self-important chattering class of Washington is massively
resistant to admitting they were wrong about Iraq, and that
you only have credibility as a critic of the war if you were
for it in the first place. I missed a logical link there. I
know how vain the chattering classes are, but the majority of
the American people has since come to conclude they were wrong
about the war -- and they say so without feeling disgraced.
What's wrong with the Washington press corps? Speaking of
people who have trouble with the truth, here's a recent George
W. line from two weeks ago I particularly prize: "There's kind
of an urban myth here in Washington about how this
administration hasn't stayed focused on Osama bin Laden.
Forget it. It's convenient throwaway lines when people say
that."
How do these urban myths get started? Perhaps with GWB on
March 13, 2002: "I don't know where bin Laden is. ... You know
... I just don't spend that much time on him. ... I'll repeat
what I said. I truly am not that concerned about him."
Or as Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff, said on April 6, 2002: "The goal (in Afghanistan) has
never been to get bin Laden. ... The goal there was never (to
go) after specific individuals." Donald Rumsfeld: Bin Laden
has been "neutralized." And Vice President Cheney: "Bin Laden
himself is not that big a threat."
And etc., etc. We got two straight years of quotes from
officials all across the Bush administration pushing the idea
that Osama bin Laden is just a minor player, we're not hunting
him, the war on terror is a much larger deal, and so on and so
forth. You know, it's one thing to tell a whopper yourself --
it's adding insult to injury to call the people who point this
out liars themselves.
A half-hour documentary about Granny D (Doris Haddock) will be
playing throughout October on various PBS channels around the
country. Granny D, the crusader for campaign finance reform,
who hiked across the country at age 90, is now 96, and the
documentary of her work is inspiring.
She's such an adorably "sweet old lady" that one forgets how
tough she has been and how consistent she has been. You want
to know where to get the strength, courage and optimism to
keep fighting for change? Listen to Granny D. More at
www.grannyd.com.
To find out more about Molly Ivins and read features by other
Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators
Syndicate web page at
www.creators.com.
COPYRIGHT 2006 CREATORS SYNDICATE, INC.
