Not to be Booted

Matt points out another installment in the endless “This is how I would fight in Iraq” series by Iraq enthusiasts. Today’s selection is by Max Boot, and he wants US troops to go out and do things other than protecting their bases. A fine idea, but, as Matt notes, hardly one that is likely to happen anytime soon. So why would Boot waste his time? The answer seems clear; when the history of this disaster is written, no “hawkish” intellectual is going to want to be associated with the war AS IT WAS FOUGHT. Boot and his ilk are carefully preparing cover stories; they supported the war because they believed it would be fought in this way, or that, or with this purpose, or the other. Thus, the intellectual will not suffer besmirchment, because after all how could one know that the Bush administration would fight the war is such a startlingly inept fashion. While the US Army is struggling in Iraq, Boot is struggling to maintain his book contracts and his space on the editorial page.