Paul Krugman on the Pentagon mystery official

[SOS]

U.S. Says Arms Link Iranians to Iraqi Shiites -NYT 2/12/07:

By JAMES GLANZ
BAGHDAD, Feb. 12 — After weeks of internal debate, senior United States military officials on Sunday literally put on the table their first public evidence of the contentious assertion that Iran supplies Shiite extremist groups in Iraq with some of the most lethal weapons in the war. (edit)

That inference, and the anonymity of the officials who made it, seemed likely to generate skepticism among those suspicious that the Bush administration is trying to find a scapegoat for its problems in Iraq, and perhaps even trying to lay the groundwork for war with Iran. (edit)

The officials were repeatedly pressed on why they insisted on anonymity in such an important matter affecting the security of American and Iraqi troops. A senior United States military official gave a partial answer, saying that without anonymity, a senior Defense Department analyst who participated in the briefing could not have contributed."

From Paul Krugman's op-ed 2/12/07:

If you were determined to start a war with Iran, how would you do it?

First, you’d set up a special intelligence unit to cook up rationales for war. A good model would be the Pentagon’s now-infamous Office of Special Plans, led by Abram Shulsky, that helped sell the Iraq war with false claims about links to Al Qaeda.

Sure enough, last year Donald Rumsfeld set up a new “Iranian directorate” inside the Pentagon’s policy shop. And last September Warren Strobel and John Walcott of McClatchy Newspapers — who were among the few journalists to warn that the administration was hyping evidence on Iraqi W.M.D. — reported that “current and former officials said the Pentagon’s Iranian directorate has been headed by Abram Shulsky.”

Who is Abram Shulsky?

Abram Shulsky, a Leo Strauss scholar and intelligence expert associated with the Project for the New American Century, is best known for his work in the Office of Special Plans, a secretive intelligence outfit in the Pentagon that was charged with digging up information on Iraq that would support the administration's arguments for going to war.
http://rightweb.irc-online.org/profile/1355

Here we go again....

[sinkingfeeling]

1. Isn't there a law that could be used to dismantle the OSP and have all members

of PNAC arrested for treason?

[OnceUponTimeOnTheNet]

2. K&R

This thread has one of the propagandists named also.

William Caldwell
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x185857

[truedelphi]

6. I lvoe the sound of that - a law that could dismantle

One of their stupid internal ministeries.

And of course with impeachment a law that culd undo the other dark forces...

[Spazito]

3. It really is amazing how similiar the set-up to lie about Iran

is to the set-up to lie about Iraq. How..........coincidental! Same people, same lies, same shit-different day.

Thanks for posting this.

[GeorgeGist]

4. These Straussians...

just don't get Leo Strauss.

To him deception was the answer to everything. You'd have thought by now they would have realized that Leo was deceiving them. :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[Morgana LaFey]

11. More and more I realize that Strauss's philosophy was really

just rationale for sociopathology (along with fascism, of course).

[Klukie]

5. kick

[truedelphi]

7. I'll repeat the last paragr. of the OP - the link is absolutely chilling

<<Who is Abram Shulsky?

<<Abram Shulsky, a Leo Strauss scholar and intelligence expert associated with the Project for <<the New American Century, is best known for his work in the Office of Special Plans, a <<secretive intelligence outfit in the Pentagon that was charged with digging up information on <<Iraq that would support the administration's arguments for going to war.
<<http://rightweb.irc-online.org/profile/1355

[Emit]

9. Shulsky was Wolfowitz's classmate and friend both at Cornell

and at the University of Chicago -- Both studied under Allan Bloom, a disciple of Strauss. (Wolfowitz took a couple of classes directly from Strauss.

[Supersedeas]

8. without anonymity, senior analyst could not have contributed??????????????

[SOS]

10. No-one would take him seriously!

nt

[Richard Steele]

16. Translation: No one would believe this story if they knew -who- was telling it.

[Jacobin]

17. I believe you have successfully translated the Administration-Speak

[Morgana LaFey]

12. anyone have a link for the Krugman op ed?

other than the NYT, that is?

[Bucky]

19. ask and ye shall recieve

http://www.wakeupfromyourslumber.com/node/629

[Morgana LaFey]

20. THANK you!!!! nt

[Wiley50]

13. Wow! That RightWeb Link Is One Hell Of A Resource

Not that I personally would plan anything

BUT

What a hit list for the revolution!

http://rightweb.irc-online.org/profile/

[Egalitarian]

14. Fool me once

I, er, uh, I won't be fooled again!

[Doondoo]

15. K&R

[Bucky]

18. That line about a "senior DoD official who couldn't be identified" jumped out at lots of people

I wondered about it here in this forum, Carpetbagger noted it... it's a weird thing to write. NPR referred to the clandestine analyst as an "intelligence" officer. Kudos to Krugman for following up on this. This certainly is a clandestine effort, trying to gin up another bogus war rage.