Accountability and Civil Wars

Briefly, Real Clear Politics quoted General Franks in Qatar and highlighted the following:

“The number of stories presented in any media outlet over the last five years that can be called into question and proven invalid is huge, and the number of incorrect assertions and absurd allegations is enormous.

If you as a military officer, diplomat or politician, use your judgement to make decisions and if your judgement is bad, what happens? You lose your job, livelihood, because you are responsible for what you do…”

Interesting, but if you’re a politician and you make a bad judgement, do you lose your job or livelihood? Obviously not.

In the same Q&A reported in a different Gulf Times article, General Franks reminds that “there is no guarantee that there not be” a civil war in Iraq. Continuing, he said, “My own country was founded in the late 18th century and some 60 years later what did we see? A civil war.” Ah, enter the General into the battle of words On the Media capably reported on 3 March 2006.