inside

The Houston Chronicle carried an opinion piece today, The Pentagon has some explaining to do by Karen Kwiatkowski, a recently retired Air Force lieutenant colonel, that is worth the read. Lt. Colonel (Ret) Kwiatkowski was in the office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, Near East South Asia and Special Plans (USDP/NESA and SP) in the Pentagon, during the build up to war in Iraq from May 2002 through February 2003. Her observations and concerns should not be dismissed.

I observed the environment in which decisions about post-war Iraq were made.

Those observations changed everything.

What I saw was aberrant, pervasive and contrary to good order and discipline. If one is seeking the answers to why peculiar bits of "intelligence" found sanctity in a presidential speech, or why the post-Saddam occupation has been distinguished by confusion and false steps, one need look no further than the process inside the Office of the Secretary of Defense. I can identify three prevailing themes.

Lt. Colonel (Ret) Kwiatkowski goes on to identify the prevailing themes as: 1. Functional isolation of the professional corps 2. Cross-agency cliques and 3. Groupthink.

Do read the article as it includes an inside look at the environment within which the Office of Special Plans was operating.