09-14-2007, 06:08 AM
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#50 (permalink)
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WAB Bartender
Defense Professional
Military Professional
Join Date: 11-24-04
Location: Vacaville, CA.
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And this:
Quote:
Juan Cole's Iran distortions (Christopher Hitchens)
As I have indicated on numerous occasions, I have genuine respect for Juan Cole and regard him as an intellectually and morally serious person. For what it's worth, I have also defended him against accusations that I thought were unfair. But he is making it difficult for those of us who would like to continue doing so. Cole's recent apologetics for the actions and statements of the Iranian regime have become increasingly strained, misleading, irresponsible, and difficult to take seriously. I am afraid that Hitchens's criticisms of Cole in this piece are entirely deserved.
And that's not all. What Cole has been saying about the Iranian nuclear program can most charitably be described as disingenuous. (E.g., "The IAEA found no smoking gun."--which denies a claim no one has made, and which Cole is smart enough to realize is entirely irrelevant to the real issues.) Perhaps Cole's concern about a possible US attack on Iran--which could, indeed, lead to disastrous consequences--is pushing him over the edge, but that's no excuse. He should get a grip on himself--and on reality.
Yours for reality-based discourse,
Jeff Weintraub
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__________________
"The quickest way of ending a war is to lose it, and if one finds the prospect of a long war intolerable, it is natural to disbelieve in the possibility of victory."
- George Orwell
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