Four Years

There were two anniversaries this week. One was the sixtieth anniversary of the first use of atomic weapons on people by the US in Hiroshima. I do not second guess Harry Truman's decision to use the bomb at the time. The fact does remain, however, that we are on the only country to have used nuclear weapons on people in 60 years of nuclear weapons.

The second anniversary today is that it has been exactly four years since the president got the following Daily White House Briefing from CIA


As far as I can tell the following things happened or didn't happen since the intelligence briefing.

1) The White House took no steps between 8/6/2001 and 9/11/2001 to investigate what Condaleeza Rice called "historical information"

2) The president stayed on vacation in Crawford

3) nothing was done to secure airports or increase security on landmarks in New York

4) 9/11

5) President pledged to catch the perpetrators

6) US invaded Afghanistan with 99-1 vote of senate.

7) Bin Laden has not been captured since. President quoted as saying Bin Laden didn't really matter.

8) US begins to make case that Saddam has nuclear program and biological weapons program

9) US insinuates that Saddam would let terrorists have nuclear weapons

10) US invades Iraq

11) close to 100,000 Iraqis have died and roughly 2000 US soldiers have died in combat in both Afghansitan and Iraq.

12) significant terrorist bombings with possible al qaeda connection in Spain, Egypt, Indonesia, and England

13) WMD are not found in Iraq after extensive search, no sign of any new nuclear weapons capability snce 1992

14) 140,000 US troops remain in Iraq. There is currently no timetable to reduce that number

15) White House staff involved in alleged leaking of the identity of a CIA agent
to discredit claim that US falsified evidence about WMD

16) President is reelected according to polls because voters have greater confidence in his ability to handle "war on terror"

17) CIA director elminated from daily intelligence briefings. During the 9/11 hearings, the White House sought to keep the 8/6/2001 memo classified.

18) New CIA director installed to "clean up" the agency

19) NSA advisor Rice is promoted to Secretary of State

20) President takes another month long "working" vacation 4 years later

Fact Check's Rove-Wilson Chronology
If you want to believe in "intelligent design", I have to say, this isn't it.
15 years from now, I hope to be remembering the 75th anniversary of Hiroshima. In the meantime, I have to ask myself if the last 4 years have made it less or more l1ikely that nuclear weapons will be used on people.