There is no longer any serious doubt that Bush administration officials deceived us into war. The key question now is why so many influential people are in denial, unwilling to admit the obvious.
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After all, suppose that a politician � or a journalist � admits to himself that Mr. Bush bamboozled the nation into war. Well, launching a war on false pretenses is, to say the least, a breach of trust. So if you admit to yourself that such a thing happened, you have a moral obligation to demand accountability � and to do so in the face not only of a powerful, ruthless political machine but in the face of a country not yet ready to believe that its leaders have exploited 9/11 for political gain. It's a scary prospect.
Paul Krugman{the second-level denial is that it's all about the oil, that it's all pea-brained Texans and American Big Bizness. which it is, in the sense that a dog with its teeth in your leg is what's up in that moment. and in the sense that the dog is motivated by the reward of raw meat and praise. it does seem likely, though, that there is another layer here that's still forbidden, taboo.}
NYTimes June 24, 2003
