Webmaster's Note: I've quit doing the "Best of Old War Dogs/Featured Post" thing but this is good enough, and was posted late enough in the day yesterday, that I want to give it a little more exposure than it would get in it's "natural" position on the blog. Originally posted 2006.10.03.19:53.

Thirty years ago in Ankara, Turkey, as an Air Force advisor to the Turkish Air Force, I worked alongside a professional aircraft maintenance officer who happens to be the father of the infamous Scott Ritter. Scott's caring parents took great pains to raise him well. I met Scott when he was a lad of about 14 years old and I was impressed with his outspoken patriotism and conservate beliefs.

His date with destiny began when Scott Ritter worked as a U.N. senior weapons inspector in Iraq between 1991and 1998. Prior to that job he served for eight years as an intelligence officer in the US Marine Corps. Along the way he married a woman from Georgia in the Soviet Union that he had met while serving there. During the 1991 Gulf War, Ritter advised General Schwarzkopf on Iraq's SCUD missile threat. Later, his efforts initially turned toward writing books. Ritter is the author of several books and the forthcoming "Target Iran."

In the lead-up to the last Gulf War, Ritter strongly opposed military operations in Iraq. As an outspoken critic of the current Bush administration, Ritter developed a high profile in the media. In recent months Ritter virtually vanished from the mainstream media and television appearances dried-up. Tonight he surfaced on the Catherine Crier Live television show to discuss current events in Iran and what he considers to be the misguided belligerent efforts of the Bush administration. Ritter spoke about his recent trip to Iran where he met with key players of the regime. 

As an anti-war activist, Ritter has aligned himself with various peace groups and people like muckraker journalist, Seymour Hersh of the NY Times, and Cindy Sheehan, a pitiful anti-Iraq War activist. He has decried the peace movement as being fragmented and lacking focus. In 2005, Ritter was widely quoted in the press as stating that George W. Bush had "signed off" on plans to bomb Iran. If so, the operation was cancelled.         

In 2005, Scott Ritter spoke at a fundraiser for Traprock Peace Center in Deerfield, Massachusetts.

He said the U.S. has defiled its reputation by engaging in the same tactics in Iraq and Iran as the terrorists it chases. "We declared a war on terror and those who practice terror," said Ritter. "Are we going to declare war on ourselves?"

These are troubling remarks, I say.

Ritter said the United States has been conducting secret reconnaissance missions inside Iran since last summer. He said people would be stunned to know that the U.S. is at war with Iran. "There hasn't been a national debate and the president hasn't declared war."

He said it all sounds very familiar. "The war in Iraq began in September of 2002, not March of 2003 like most would think," said Ritter. "And the Bush administration fabricated intelligence to back up its decision to go to war. Later, it manipulated the results of Iraq's elections."

"We're being told a lot of lies and the media is following blindly and parroting information," said Ritter.

"The Bush administration's goal for Iran is the destruction of the country's alleged program to develop nuclear weapons. Ritter said he believes the goal is to attack the oil-rich nation with the hopes of leading to a regime change as in Iraq."

Ritter said Iran has a nuclear energy program, not a nuclear weapons program as the administration would like Americans to believe.

"They just want to live like we do," said Ritter. "In order to survive, Iran needs an alternative energy supply. Who are we to say they can't have that?"

Ritter said the president and his administration know it's an energy program.

His thoughts on Iran's nuclear program are hard to swallow for even the most naive observer.

As an interested observer, I have watched with dismay the metamorphosis of Scott Ritter from a hesitant hawk to a determined dove, a vociferous, rabid critic of the current Bush administration. And I wonder what drove him over the edge. Although others have written extensively about Ritter's transformation, the reason why remains obscured. I think we all will be seeing a lot more of Scott Ritter in the days to come as he hones his message to attack the motives and strategy of the Bush administration and incite dissension in the nation. A new career in politics for Ritter may be on the horizon.       

Contributed by Karl Bossi on October 4, 2006 at 01:16 AM in Karl Bossi | Permalink

Comments

Posted by: Bill Faith

Excellent, Karl. I've done away with the daily "featured posts" but I'll bump the timestamp on this to give it more exposure than it might otherwise get by being posted so late i the day.

Posted by: Bill Faith | Oct 3, 2006 8:49:16 PM