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OddjobXL · 04-20-07, 09:09 AM

I think the first step to making sense of this story is getting a sense of the source, Melanie Phillips. I hadn't heard of her before so I did some research. She's another former lefty turned neoconservative though she followed her own path to get there. Also she's the author of a book called "Londinistan," from the sounds of it a raving screed against Muslims and a British government which is "transfixed by the artificial division it has erected between those who actively espouse violence and those who do not." This gets much praise from the Daniel Pipes end of the spectrum but not so much from elsewhere.

She's adopted the popular mantra in those circles that anyone who questions Likudnik Israeli policy or the neoconservative agenda is, by default, anti-semetic.

My assessment of Gaubatz is a bit more gentle. I think he really believes someone who told him something was right. But he didn't actually see anything - which is why he was lobbying so hard for people to go look. If I had to make the call, I'd say go do the digging and find out if anything's there. My instinct says that there are plenty of other professionals who were working the same beat and they may well have discovered other informers or evidence that discounted these sites as worthwhile. But if he's right, that's a big if, it's still too important to ignore.

And while my instincts are feeling chatty, I'd also tend to discount Ms. Phillip's suspicion that Bush's people are protecting him from embarrasement by not following up Gaubatz's claims. If I were them I'd be hot on the heels of any leads to prove Bush right. Even if the trail led to Syria it would be a great distraction for Americans from the other problems besetting the administration right now. "See, the Syrians are very bad people! Airstrikes all around!" And, in this instance, I might even agree with them. She also claims the "New York Times" article dismisses Gaubatz as a die-hard WMD nut but, frankly, it was that very article which got me thinking he genuinely believes what he's saying.

Judge for yourself:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/23/us...erland&emc=rss

04-20-07, 09:09 AM	#11
OddjobXL Torpedoman Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 119 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	I think the first step to making sense of this story is getting a sense of the source, Melanie Phillips. I hadn't heard of her before so I did some research. She's another former lefty turned neoconservative though she followed her own path to get there. Also she's the author of a book called "Londinistan," from the sounds of it a raving screed against Muslims and a British government which is "transfixed by the artificial division it has erected between those who actively espouse violence and those who do not." This gets much praise from the Daniel Pipes end of the spectrum but not so much from elsewhere. She's adopted the popular mantra in those circles that anyone who questions Likudnik Israeli policy or the neoconservative agenda is, by default, anti-semetic. My assessment of Gaubatz is a bit more gentle. I think he really believes someone who told him something was right. But he didn't actually see anything - which is why he was lobbying so hard for people to go look. If I had to make the call, I'd say go do the digging and find out if anything's there. My instinct says that there are plenty of other professionals who were working the same beat and they may well have discovered other informers or evidence that discounted these sites as worthwhile. But if he's right, that's a big if, it's still too important to ignore. And while my instincts are feeling chatty, I'd also tend to discount Ms. Phillip's suspicion that Bush's people are protecting him from embarrasement by not following up Gaubatz's claims. If I were them I'd be hot on the heels of any leads to prove Bush right. Even if the trail led to Syria it would be a great distraction for Americans from the other problems besetting the administration right now. "See, the Syrians are very bad people! Airstrikes all around!" And, in this instance, I might even agree with them. She also claims the "New York Times" article dismisses Gaubatz as a die-hard WMD nut but, frankly, it was that very article which got me thinking he genuinely believes what he's saying. Judge for yourself: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/23/us...erland&emc=rss Last edited by OddjobXL; 04-20-07 at 02:29 PM.