Coleen Rowley in LA Times: Could Wikileaks have stopped 9/11?

[Enrique]

http://articles.latimes.com/2010/oct/15/opinion/la-oe-rowley-wikileaks-20101015

If WikiLeaks had been around in 2001, could the events of 9/11 have been prevented? The idea is worth considering.

The organization has drawn both high praise and searing criticism for its mission of publishing leaked documents without revealing their source, but we suspect the world hasn't yet fully seen its potential. Let us explain.

There were a lot of us in the run-up to Sept. 11 who had seen warning signs that something devastating might be in the planning stages. But we worked for ossified bureaucracies incapable of acting quickly and decisively. Lately, the two of us have been wondering how things might have been different if there had been a quick, confidential way to get information out.

(...)

[Tansy_Gold]

1. + a bazillion for one of the all-time greatest heroes

One of my most cherished possessions is a thank-note from Ms. Rowley.



Tansy Gold

[jimlup]

2. I distinctly recall several politians saying stuff like ...

"There is a terrorist attack coming very soon that will forever change the way we think about terrorism." Unfortunately, I don't recall the source of this quote but I believe I saw it on 60 minutes. Bush and his administration were so asleep at the wheel it was criminal negligence. Or if they weren't it was treason. Either way, that is the first of the crimes that Bush and his cronies should be prosecuted for. Certainly others should follow and would probably be easier to get a conviction on (starting an unprovoked war would be a slam dunk in an honest court).

We really lost big as a nation when Bush was allowed to steal the 2000 election. I don't know if wikileaks would have prevented 9/11 but I'm pretty sure a Gore presidency would have caught it.

[Enrique]

3. i agree with you about Bush and Gore

there's a reason why such spectacular attacks are so rare, the reason is that great countries like the U.S. are almost always run by competent people. What other president, in the history of the U.S. or any other major power, would have said "ok, you've covered your ass now" in response to the Aug 6 briefing?

[jtrockville]

4. None that I can think of. But I believe Palin would react the same way.