Thursday, February 08, 2007

 

How about what's going on in the bowels of LANS?


The Pentagon's not-so-little secret
As the president and Republicans continue to hype the surge -- and stifle debate about it -- Bush's own war planners are preparing for failure in Iraq.


By Sidney Blumenthal

Photo: AP/Wide World
Composite photo of George W. Bush and soldiers from the 1st Infantry at Fort Riley, Kan., who will be deployed to Iraq as part of the troop surge.

Feb. 8, 2007 | Deep within the bowels of the Pentagon, policy planners are conducting secret meetings to discuss what to do in the worst-case scenario in Iraq about a year from today if and when President Bush's escalation of more than 20,000 troops fails, a participant in those discussions told me. None of those who are taking part in these exercises, shielded from the public view and the immediate scrutiny of the White House, believes that the so-called surge will succeed. On the contrary, everyone thinks it will not only fail to achieve its aims but also accelerate instability by providing a glaring example of U.S. incapacity and incompetence.

The profoundly pessimistic thinking that permeates the senior military and the intelligence community, however, is forbidden in the sanitized atmosphere of mind-cure boosterism that surrounds Bush.

Comments:
You know, one guy who struck me as smart and knew to bail was Colin Powell.
 
I hurt my shoulder today. I was patting myself on the back, again, for having had the uncommon good sense to have left LANL when I did.

I would not have predicted that LANL under LANS would have gone this far south, so quickly.

--Doug
 
Contingency planning is not only common, it's irresponsible to not do so. It should come as no surprise that Pentagon officials are analyzing the down-side risk and planning for worst-case scenarios. Why the alarm? Or is this propaganda disguised as "News"?
 
Anonymous "2/08/2007 4:28 PM": You think this is "propaganda"? You think this blog is FOX NEWS? You're clearly not banging on all two cylinders of your Harley. Or maybe YOU'RE in the bowels of LANS--yeah, THAT'S the ticket!
 
I get the feeling this is not an unlikely worst case scenario, but the most likely scenario.

Let me know when the pool starts on eventual outcome scenarios.
 
Think about it: what could be the worst case scenario? What would be the worst case for LANS, of course, is that the news is finally released that the number 2 manager of the lab, ex-Bechtel VP Mitchell, flaunted security and took a laptop full of classified material home. And worse, got caught.

After having made a huge deal out of crucifying any of the little people who had the bad luck to find themselves in the middle of a security flap in recent years (Quintana, Kauppila, Lee), LANS/DOE/NNSA will not be allowed to bury this one. It could well be the excuse that Congress is looking for to terminate the LANS contract at LANL for cause.

But what will be the worst case for LANL staff? That the truth behind the real reason for Mitchell's sudden departure from LANL never comes out. LANS retaining the contract. Six and 1/2 more years of inept, abusive management. That would be the worst case for LANL staff.
 
That more bad news is in the offing is a good bet. Why else would Anastasio have waited this long to speak to LANL staff about the Congressional hearings? Except for a brief "Well, I'm off to Washington" memo, he didn't utter a "peep" before scurrying off to Washington. Then, after coming back, he waited two weeks to hold a meeting with staff. Can't wait to hear what's next.
 
"That more bad news is in the offing is a good bet."

That was a good bet. Stay tuned.
 
7:12 AM,

How about a little hint, just to keep our interest piqued over the weekend?

Mitchell, or something else?

-Pat
 
Post a Comment



<< Home

This page is powered by Blogger. Isn't yours?