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May 25, 2012
Mark Clayton: Is Hillary's State Dept. hacking Al Qaeda? Not quite
Erika Bolstad: Temple cancels Wasserman Schultz speech
The Kosher Gourmet by Ethel G. Hofman: The former president of the International Association of Culinary Professionals, whose members included the likes of Julia Child, is back with contemporary Shavous cuisine: Ruby Fruit Soup, Sweet Noodle Kugel with Cheese, Key Lime Curd, Calsone Casserole Frittata with Wild Mushrooms, Sun-dried tomatoes and Olives, Baked Tilapia with Pepper Cheese Cream and Brown Sugar Shortbread
May 24, 2012
Jeff Jacoby: The peace process battered Israel's reputation
Michael Muskal: 'Pro-choice' position hits record low, according to poll
Chris Farrell: Are We in a Tech Bubble?
The Kosher Gourmet by Penelope Wall: PHILLY CHEESE STEAKS --- hold the steak!
May 23, 2012
Tony Pugh: More private colleges offering tuition discounts
Mary Beth Franklin: How to Choose the Right Annuity for You
Tina Susman: The wig wasn't enough: Man gets 13 years for posing as his dead mom
The Kosher Gourmet by Emma Christensen:A simple way to do fish right
May 22, 2012
Warren Richey: Can US group challenge overseas surveillance act? Supreme Court to decide
Thomas M. Anderson: Walking Away From a Mortgage
The Kosher Gourmet by Megan Gordon: Enjoy a celebration of the most rich and layered flavors: Black bean, sweet potato and quinoa chili
May 21, 2012
Mark Clayton: Cybersecurity: How US utilities passed up chance to protect their networks
Howard LaFranchi: NATO summit: Who will foot the bill for long-term Afghanistan security?
Chris Farrell : Earn Dividends in Emerging Markets with This WisdomTree ETF
Stephen Whiteside, Ph.D. : Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: Social anxiety disorder --- or just shy?
Guy Jackson : Victim's father regrets death of Lockerbie bomber
The Kosher Gourmet by Mario Batali: Famed chef's veal shoulder farsumagru: A festive meat course for late spring
May 18, 2012
Rabbi Berel Wein: Striving: The People of the Book's Book for (All of) the People
Steven Goldberg: 5 Great Stock Picks and the Exchange-Traded Fund that Owns Them
Mary Pickett, M.D.: Ask the Harvard Experts: Don't be forced into gluten-free lifestyle based merely on a doctor's false-positive test
The Kosher Gourmet by Carolyn Malcoun: DIY healthy lunchbox treats: HOMEMADE FRUIT BARS for kids and brown-bagging adults alike
May 17, 2012
Warren Richey: Teacher fired for being unwed and pregnant can sue religious school, court rules
Josh Mitnick: Netanyahu's 'centrist' coalition is already proving it's anything but
Steven Goldberg: Earn Dividends in Emerging Markets with This WisdomTree ETF
Amina Khan: Research links coffee to lower death rates
The Kosher Gourmet by Faith Duran : Cheesy Potato Breakfast Casserole with Cheddar and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
May 16, 2012
Carmen Terzic, M.D., Ph.D. : Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: A variety of exercises can help improve balance
Melissa Healy: National strategy on Alzheimer's disease aims to halt it by 2025
The Kosher Gourmet by Joyce White : GOODNESS GRACIOUS: GREENS! 4 winning recipes that are no longer just for down-home folks (Includes expert tips & techniques)
May 15, 2012
Kristen Chick: Obama administration resumes arms sales to Bahrain despite serious unresolved human rights issues. Activists feel abandoned
Pat Mertz Esswein: Homes are now affordable again and mortgage rates are low. What you need to know before you buy
Kathy Kristof: Our Practical Investor Fights Inflation with These 6 Investments
Sue Hubbard, M.D.: The Kid's Doctor: Lactose intolerant young child? Check again
The Kosher Gourmet by Kathy Hunt: Spread a Little Excitement with EXOTIC CONDIMENTS (4 RECIPES)
May 14, 2012
Lisa Gerstner: How to Protect Your Identity, Finances If You Lose Your Phone
Harvard Health Letters: Heart disease and dementia
The Kosher Gourmet by Megan Gordon: MANGO COCONUT OAT MORNING MUFFINS are a bright but hearty delight
May 11, 2012
Jessica L. Anderson: Get the Best Deal on a Used Car
Jett Stone: Forget face-lifts and fake knees. Scientists have seen the fountain of youth --- and it's broccoli
The Kosher Gourmet by Chef Mario Batali: The famed chef's vegetable dish that tastes true to the season: FAVAS AND SUGAR SNAP PEAS WITH POTATOES AND TARRAGON
May 10, 2012
Sergei L. Loiko: Putin sends warning to U.S., NATO in Victory Day speech at Red Square
Mary Rourke: How being a 'mentch' got Vidal Sasoon his start and fighting in Israel's War of Independence provided him with confidence and a strong sense of his own identity
Jeff Bertolucci: Get Home Phone Service for Less Than $10 a Month
The Kosher Gourmet by Betty Rosbottom: Gleaming with its golden, crimson, and snowy white hues, this silken smooth and creamy STRAWBERRY ORANGE TRIFLE looks impressive, but is easy to prepare
May 9, 2012
Sharon Palmer, R.D. How you can reduce your risk -- or delay -- chronic diseases associated with aging
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Jewish World Review
Nov 8, 2011 / 11 Mar-Cheshvan, 5772
About That 2007 National Intelligence Estimate
By
Mona Charen
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
In the least surprising announcement since Solyndra declared bankruptcy, the International Atomic Energy Agency is set to release a report this week confirming that the Islamic Republic of Iran has completed all of the steps required to build a nuclear arsenal. With the help of Russian, Pakistani and North Korean scientists, the report suggests Iran was able to overcome the technical hurdles involved in developing a detonator that will create the critical mass necessary for a nuclear chain reaction.
For more than a decade, it has been obvious that this was Iran's goal and intention. Yet our intelligence community issued a National Intelligence Estimate in 2007 declaring, "with high confidence" that Iran had "frozen" its active efforts to obtain nuclear weapons in 2003 and adding its "moderate confidence" that Iran had not resumed those efforts thereafter.
Democrats, who believe that the chief threats to world peace are to be found in the Republican Party, rejoiced in the report at the time. Senator John Edwards said, "The new National Intelligence Estimate shows that George Bush and Dick Cheney's rush to war with Iran is, in fact, a rush to war. The new NIE finds that Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003 and that Iran can be dissuaded from pursuing a nuclear weapon through diplomacy." Senator Barack Obama, already running for president, said, "By reporting that Iran halted its nuclear weapon development program four years ago because of international pressure, the new National Intelligence Estimate makes a compelling case for less saber-rattling and more direct diplomacy."
Senator Joseph Biden declared the report "good news" because "it makes it harder for these cowboys (i.e. the Bush administration) to go to war." The voluble Biden continued in this vein. After his host, Chris Matthews, protested that "this crowd" was using terms like "weapons of mass destruction," "regime change" and "homeland" as excuses for belligerence, Biden offered that, while he couldn't "prove it," he believed that Bush and Cheney (but principally Cheney) had gone to war in Iraq in order to "dominate that part of the world . . . and to be able to control oil."
Small minds will make crude uses of available weapons, of course, and the NIE proved a particularly timely cudgel for some Democrats. It's worth pausing over that 2007 NIE though, because the great story of the first decade of the 21st century, if you listened to Democrats, was that the Bush administration had "politicized" intelligence regarding Iraq. The administration, it was charged, had "cherry picked" the analyses, highlighting only those that supported its a priori conclusion that Iraq possessed WMDs.
This version of history offers a free pass to the intelligence community, which had, in the person of CIA Chief George Tenet, assured Bush that it was a "slam, dunk case" that Iraq had WMDs. It was the CIA and associated agencies that briefed Secretary of State Colin Powell about the evidence for Iraq's WMDs — evidence he presented to the United Nations.
When the intelligence proved to be dead wrong, the CIA appears not to have engaged in any useful after-action evaluations of its own performance. Instead, it chose to swing wildly in the opposite direction, declaring that Iran was no longer pursuing a nuclear arsenal. To reach this conclusion, the NIE ignored evidence supplied in 2007 by the International Atomic Energy Agency that Iran had completed construction of 3,000 centrifuges — enough to produce enriched uranium for at least one nuclear weapon per year. Gliding past such reports, the NIE focused on the "intentions" of Iran's leadership and arrived at the brilliant conclusion that they no longer yearned to achieve nuclear status.
It's hard to overstate the effect of that 2007 NIE. President Bush had long maintained that he would not permit Iran to become a nuclear power. But in 2007, the unpopular Iraq War damaged Bush's standing and credibility. Still, he might have been willing to consider a series of air strikes against Iran's nuclear program had that NIE not made this course untenable.
The intelligence community, having misled the nation about WMDs in Iraq, misled it again about WMDs in Iran.
President Obama, too, has long maintained that a nuclear Iran is "unacceptable." Does that mean anything? The mullahs have mocked his earnest diplomacy. Even the U.N. now declares that Iran is a nuclear power. The only way for President Obama to salvage any particle of integrity is to do now what Bush should have done in 2008 and Obama should have done in 2009 — take out the nukes by military action.
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Mona Charen Archives
© 2006, Creators Syndicate
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