I made the same comment .. (4.00 / 2)

about Zakaria over at Spencer's blog(Attackerman) .. I had thought he was for the Iraq invasion .. this just confirms it .. so you are right .. Fareed was for it .. before he was against it

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by: Calvin Jones and the 13th Apostle @ Mon Mar 16, 2009 at 20:42:21 PM CDT

he really was self-delusional (4.00 / 4)

He continually denounced Europe for opposing the war out of jealousy:

http://www.newsweek.com/id/66422

Take our policy toward Iraq. If it succeeded--and Saddam Hussein were disarmed or replaced with a better regime--imagine Europe's circumstances. It would confront an America that would be even more powerful. Where would that leave France? Europe's great powers feel an understandable competition with the United States. They once wielded huge influence across the globe, are rich and have their own ideas about ordering the world. But all they get are supporting roles in a movie produced by, directed by and starring the United States of America.

then he goes to Asia and discovers everyone is against the war too.  So he titles the article "They're Rooting For America, Too" Yet from what he wrote, he must have been self-delusional:

During my tour, Iraq was topic No. 1 on everybody's mind. I could barely find a single person who was in favor of a war. (There were some in Singapore.) When I would make the case for the urgent need to disarm Saddam Hussein and the great opportunity to help Iraqis build a modern Arab state, people would listen quizzically. They would dispute the facts, my account of America's motives, the prospects for a better Iraq. Then finally they would get to what really bothered them and say in exasperation, "But why do you get to decide who gets replaced 6,000 miles away?"

He literally argued with people that we needed a war.

The whole thing is really typical Broderism, with the twist of asking people in other countries instead of the Midwest.  There's no sign of any realization that the war would be a disaster until it started.  In the middle of the initial military campaign:

http://www.newsweek.com/id/58929

But perhaps the larger error may have been to disregard the role that nationalism might play in this situation. I write "may" and "might" because it is simply too soon to tell for sure. It is clear that many in Iraq--particularly in the south--would cheer the Americans were it not for fears of Saddam's still-powerful goons. But people might also have mixed feelings about an invasion by foreigners.

I continue to believe that this was entirely obvious. It was after all cited by George H.W. Bush in his memoirs.


New Jersey politics at Blue Jersey.

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by: Hopeful in NJ @ Mon Mar 16, 2009 at 20:44:58 PM CDT

here is where he called for invasion (4.00 / 2)

Fareed Zakaria: Invade Iraq, But Bring Friends:

You will find in Washington these days a remarkable number of people who claim that they were in favor of invading Iraq during the gulf war 11 years ago. I am not one of them... Events over the past two years have made me change my mind.

Still, a pre-emptive invasion of a country gives one pause. But there is another massive benefit to it. Done right, an invasion would be the single best path to reform the Arab world.

The most amazing part is the last paragraph, where he warns the Bush administration not to decide against war (my emphasis):

The Iraq operation would be America's largest military operation since the gulf war and its largest foreign-policy undertaking since Vietnam. That reality might make the administration decide not to go ahead. It should decide instead not to go alone.

I had forgotten all of this -- or didn't read Newsweek -- and quite like Zakaria, so I am really getting into reading the columns where is he is so wrong.  

New Jersey politics at Blue Jersey.

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by: Hopeful in NJ @ Mon Mar 16, 2009 at 21:04:22 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

and here he explains how Bush should provoke the war (4.00 / 2)

To Fire on Iraq, Use a Trigger on August 5, 2002:

Let me make a prediction. If the administration stays on its current path, there will be no conflict with Iraq. However justified the cause, the United States will not initiate a war against another country without a specific provocation.

...
If the administration wants to take military action against Iraq--and I believe it should--it will have to find a provocation, a casus belli. Some suggest that we push Saddam Hussein and hope he reacts...

It's worth trying but probably won't work...

All of which means, inevitably, that Washington will have to try to provoke a crisis over inspections. The United States should propose a new and vigorous system of U.N. inspections--with a clear deadline for compliance. If Saddam refuses or delays, he will give America a rationale that has U.N. sanction and can be used to build international support.

...And even if the inspections do not produce the perfect crisis, Washington will still be better off for having tried because it would be seen to have made every effort to avoid war.

...This problem is not going to go away. Unless Saddam is stopped, in a few years the world will almost certainly face a nuclear-armed megalomaniac. That's why we need to get to work, find a trigger and --then carefully start shooting.

New Jersey politics at Blue Jersey.

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by: Hopeful in NJ @ Mon Mar 16, 2009 at 21:08:34 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

I think Atrios nailed it (4.00 / 6)

"Serious" basically just means that you are broadly dedicated to the US dominance project.  Supporting the Iraq war was a big test of that premise.  I can't think of anyone who supported that war who is now discredited in the Village, but I notice Phil Donahue didn't get his show back after he was proved right.

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by: Daniel De Groot @ Mon Mar 16, 2009 at 21:12:50 PM CDT

Zakaria (0.00 / 0)

Somehow, one thinks it is hateful for a person to denounce another country for "imperialism" while being guilty of the same crime yourself.  At least Americans violently attack their country when it does such stuff.  Other nations should maybe do the same.

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by: jim s @ Tue Mar 17, 2009 at 12:34:44 PM CDT