March 3, 2004

Abu Musab Zarqawi, a Jordanian militant with ties to al-Qaida, is now blamed for more than 700 terrorist killings in Iraq. ... NBC reports that "long before the war the Bush administration had several chances to wipe out his terrorist operation and perhaps kill Zarqawi himself — but never pulled the trigger." Military officials believe the administration feared destroying the terrorist camp in Iraq could undercut its case for war against Saddam.

Many people who opposed the invasion said it would distract from the fight against actual threats of terror -- and here is direct and specific proof. What's doubly damning about this story is Zarqawi was apparently in Kirma, a part of northern Iraq outside Saddam's control; indeed, it was part of the "No-Fly Zone." If known al Qaeda terrorists were operating in a region constantly patrolled by the US, why wouldn't the US have them "on the run" and "smoke them out"?

Also: David Kay, the man who led the CIA's effort to find WMDs in Iraq, has urged the Bush administration to "come clean" and admit to the American people it was wrong about the existence of the weapons.

The death of heterosexuality, or why gay sex is like pure heroin. As Atrios writes: "I couldn't have said it better if I were trying to write an over-the-top parody of these people."

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