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June 17, 2005

The long, slow fuse of DSM

But it's possible it's less a dud than a bomb with a long, slow fuse.

A few days ago I read this piece over at Powerline where John Hinderaker offers his "analysis" of the Downing Street Memo. In addition to a lame attempt to rehash UN 1441, Hinderaker tries to take Juan Cole to task on the word "fixing" from the DSM:

Cole focuses on what is, obviously, a striking sentence. It isn't clear, however, what it was intended to mean.

Ahh...the definition of "fixing". Kind of makes me wax fondly for the meaning of "is".

London Times journalist (and DSM point man) Michael Smith's community interview from yesterday morning at the Washington Post should lay that to rest for poor John:

Michael Smith: There are number of people asking about fixed and its meaning. This is a real joke. I do not know anyone in the UK who took it to mean anything other than fixed as in fixed a race, fixed an election, fixed the intelligence. If you fix something, you make it the way you want it. The intelligence was fixed and as for the reports that said this was one British official. Pleeeaaassee! This was the head of MI6. How much authority do you want the man to have? He has just been to Washington, he has just talked to George Tenet. He said the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy. That translates in clearer terms as the intelligence was being cooked to match what the administration wanted it to say to justify invading Iraq. Fixed means the same here as it does there. More leaks? I do hope so and the more Blair and Bush lie to try to get themselves off the hook the more likely it is that we will get more leaks.

Let me get that relevant part and set it aside:

I do not know anyone in the UK who took it to mean anything other than fixed as in fixed a race, fixed an election, fixed the intelligence. If you fix something, you make it the way you want it.

Fixed. Set up. Cooked up. Lied.

The mystery is solved.

Posted by Carla at June 17, 2005 07:07 AM