Bombs away? An Interview with Scott Ritter on Iran

Key quote:

MT: But it is now clearer than ever that our invasion of Iraq has been a disaster. How do you explain the lack of opposition?

Ritter: It's difficult to explain. First of all you have to note, from the public side, that very few Americans actually function as citizens anymore. What I mean by that are people who invest themselves in this country, people who care, who give a damn. Americans are primarily consumers today, and so long as they continue to wrap themselves in the cocoon of comfort, and the system keeps them walking down a road to the perceived path of prosperity, they don't want to rock the boat. If it doesn't have a direct impact on their day-to-day existence, they simply don't care.

There's a minority of people who do, but the majority of Americans don't. And if the people don't care — and remember, the people are the constituents — if the constituents don't care, then those they elect to higher office won't feel the pressure to change.

More here, from the 18 October issue of Esquire on those rabid radicals, Flynt Leverett and his wife, former AIPAC-er Hillary Mann, describing how the neocons in the Bush admin completely fucked us all over on Iran.

Here's the talk Leverett gave at that radical-lefty organization, the Cato Institute.

The should-be-famous-by-now-but-isn't redacted NYT op-ed mentioned in the Esquire piece.