The BBC reports:
Mistakes made in Iraq, says Straw
Former Foreign Secretary Jack Straw has described the current situation in Iraq as “dire”.
Mr Straw, who held the job at the time the UK decided to take part in the 2003 war, said there were things he regretted about the campaign.
Speaking on BBC One’s Question Time, he said “mistakes” were made by the US following the invasion.
State department efforts to ensure a “proper civilian administration” were not followed through, he said.
“The current situation is dire,” he said.
“I think many mistakes were made after the military action – there is no question about it – by the United States administration.
Why? Because they failed to follow the lead of Secretary (of State, Colin) Powell.
Colin Powell has admitted his infamous speech in the United Nations on so-called Iraqi weapons of mass destruction, the official pretext for the war, were lies.
That he, and Jack Straw, now have second thoughts on the war, makes them at least somewhat better than Bush and Blair who are “staying the course” of bloodshed.
However, it is still regrettable that many politicians wait with coming back to their senses till after leaving office.
How much better would it have been if Colin Powell, when in the United Nations building the copy of Pablo Picasso’s famous anti-war painting Guernica was covered, as the reality of war would contrast too much with his “WMD” speech, would have personally torn the cloth away to make Picasso’s truth visible again.
And would have ripped to little shreds his untruthful speech, and thrown his photoshopped “WMD” slides into the wastepaper basket.
Somewhat like the body double of the dictator, played by Charlie Chaplin, in the closing scene of Chaplin’s film, The Great Dictator.
Jack Straw against Muslim women: here.
Dear Kitty. Some blog 
*Falling on His Sword: Colin Powell’s most significant moment turned
Posted by: “hapi22” hapi22@earthlink.net robinsegg
Sun Oct 1, 2006 10:36 am (PST)
Why are we just NOW starting to learn all of these old stories from The
Washington Post?
For six years, and more, they have covered up for Bush and slanted their
coverage to cover Bush’s butt.
Now, all of a sudden, it is “time” for them to let these stories out?
Why?
Maybe Chris Floyd has the correct answer.
———————————————————-
*Falling on His Sword: Colin Powell’s most significant moment turned out
to be his lowest*
by Karen DeYoung
The Washington Post Magazine
October 1, 2006; Page W12
ON WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2004, eight days after the president he
served was elected to a second term, Secretary of State Colin Powell
received a telephone call from the White House at his State Department
office. The caller was not President Bush but Chief of Staff Andrew
Card, and he got right to the point.
“The president would like to make a change,” Card said, using a
time-honored formulation that avoided the words “resign” or “fire.” He
noted briskly that there had been some discussion of having Powell
remain until after Iraqi elections scheduled for the end of January, but
that the president had decided to take care of all Cabinet changes
sooner rather than later. Bush wanted Powell’s resignation letter dated
two days hence, on Friday, November 12, Card said, although the White
House expected him to stay at the State Department until his successor
was confirmed by the Senate.
– – – – – – – – – – – – –
[Photo Caption]
Falling on His Sword
Former Secretary of State Colin Powell played a key role in promoting
and defending the Bush administration’s decision to invade Iraq in 2003.
But in making the case against Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, Powell
may have sold his reputation.
– – – – – – – – – – – – –
After four long years, Powell had anticipated the end of his service and
sometimes even longed for it. He had never directly told the president
but thought he had made clear to him during the summer of 2004 that he
did not intend to stay into a second term.
There had been public speculation as the election drew near that the
president might ask the secretary of state to reenlist, at least
temporarily. Powell was still the most popular member of Bush’s team,
far more popular with the public than the president himself. Senior
Powell aides were convinced that the secretary anticipated an invitation
to stay, and they were equally certain that he intended to accept. The
approaching elections in Iraq, hints of progress in the
Israeli-Palestinian peace process and the rumored departure of Defense
Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, a principal Powell nemesis, made the next six
months look like a rare period of promise for diplomacy.
The president himself made no contact with Powell after Card’s call.
Read the REST of this LONG article at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/27/AR2006092700106.html
Washington Post reporter Karen DeYoung has a new book out, “Soldier: The
Life of Colin Powell.”
Chris Floyd’s column about WHY Bob Woodward wrote “State of Denial”
now, at: http://www.chris-floyd.com/
LikeLike
in “Soldier: The Life of
Colin Powell,” Powell’s wife, Alma, says the former secretary
of state was “callously used to promote a war she wished had
never happened,” author Karen DeYoung writes.
LikeLike
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