The Commissar provides some much-needed historical perspective in response to Andrew Sullivan’s annoyance at the 9-11 Commission hearings:
What is there to say? We have a frigging war on and the major networks all run this? I have nothing to add. Except to say: we have a war on. We used to win them before we engaged in elaborate blame-games as to who was asleep at the wheel when they broke out.
As the Commissar explains, that’s simply not true:
After Pearl Harbor, Admiral Husband Kimmel and General Walter Short were relieved of duty and pointedly retired. They, and the events leading up to December 7, 1941, were the object of nine major investigations, conducted by the Army, the Navy, Congress, and other panels.
. . . .
Those nine commissions in the WWII years definitel “engaged in elaborate blame-games as to who was asleep at the wheel when the war broke out,” and it took 50 years to clear Kimmel’s and Short’s names.
Did the Pearl Harbor commissions hurt the prosecution of World War II? There’s no evidence for it. Did they hurt Kimmel and Short, and deprive us of their services? Yes.
Was it profoundly unjust to hold Kimmel and Short responsible for errors that they didn’t commit? Yes.
Fifty years, and the important things don’t change.
Nothing is wrong with investigations into events a la 9/11. The terrorist attacks were particularly different because of where they happened and the availability of 24/7 video news coverage. That kind of makes it important to some that we get to the bottom of the reasons, don’t you think?
The commission’s hovered on the edge between real utility and pointless bickering for most of its existence. I think Rice’s testimony helped keep it useful. We understand now that there are huge systemic problems in the way intelligence is gathered, prioritized, and acted upon. I think it’s reasonable to say that without these hearings there would be substantially less awareness of that and substantially less pressure to repair it. Which may itself prevent one or more similar attacks and greatly increase our efficiency in prosecuting this war. Worth it? In exchange for the sideshow elements? Of course. Sullivan dismissing it for the negatives without addressing the positives? Shameful.
Asking questions and then tersely answering them yourself? Silly.
Asking questions and then tersely answering them yourself? Silly.
Well, I’m in good company.
Ah, sorry von. I’m the jerk. That was entirely self-mockery. I hadn’t even noticed that there were examples in your post.
Or maybe it was subliminal. Anyway, the lesson is don’t take shots at yourself if there may be innocent bystanders.
Von, I’m unclear on what you’re proposing. Investigations are pointless, counterproductive witchhunts and we shouldn’t bother?
No worries, Sidereal. (I was already kinda grimacing at my own use of this rhetorical cliche.)
Von, I’m unclear on what you’re proposing. Investigations are pointless, counterproductive witchhunts and we shouldn’t bother?
I only propose that it’s important for the 9-11 commission to get it right. And that we not leap to conclusions regarding what Bush should’ve/could’ve/would’ve done.
von, I don’t know that anyone leaped – “we took a small step, and conclusions were there.”
I actually turned Condi Rice off 1/3 of the way through the show.
“Was it profoundly unjust to hold Kimmel and Short responsible for errors that they didn’t commit? Yes.”
This may not be relevant to this particular case, for these men may have been charged unjustly with specific errors.
But I had thought there was a pattern in history that high command, great power or great responsibility were accompanied in practice by an unreasonable and even unjust responsibility for failure. Maybe this has some superstition involved.
If you lost your destroyer, it did not matter how or why you lost your destroyer, and though you would nor receive public censure for losing the vessel, you were unlikely to get another command.
And this was partly why “a captain goes down with his ship”.
I think (though i’m not an expert on this particular issue) that they were relieved of command, etc. based on specific accusations of negligience that went beyond our general unpreparedness for the attack.
That’s one of the funniest things I’ve read on the web recently. Even considering sidereal was poking fun at himself. Props, von.