"Our Worst Halloween Nightmare"

I was living in New York’s Greenwich Village when Norman Podhoretz declared that he was giving up on the liberals and declaring liberalism dead, everyone thought he was either kidding or mad. Afterall, he was associated with its roots. But his book “Making It” convinced us that he was not kidding. This was in the sixties…

When he left, we thought that would be the end of him.

That was some fifty years ago.

But he kept popping up like a bad penny.

If not him, William Kristol, who had abandoned liberalism for the cloak of conservatism.

. Moreover, Podhoretz’s newly minted conservatism was most visible through editing of Commentary, a conservative news magazine..

And his philosophical influence on the White House and its policy has been grossly under-examined. In effect, Podhoretz may even be credited with being the architect of all of the neo-con aggression that we have witnessed in the last six years. He is also one of the original signers of the neo-cons statement of policy that has influenced think tanks who envision a new American Century….

But don’t count him out just yet—especially when Bush, his protégé still has more than a year left where he could still do incalculable damage.

He’s since made his presence felt through his editorials and his affiliations with Bush II where he’s served as an advisor and earned the sobriquet of Neo-Con, or perhaps the master of the Neo-Cons. In fact, while maintaining the lowest of profiles, he is the one who pushed for Bush to go to war with Iraq and, now, Iran.

Bush according to critics has already painted himself into a corner if he doesn’t go to War with Iran but in case he doesn’t, Podhoretz has not painted himself into a corner. He is now a consultant to Rudy Giuliani who can’t wait to invade Iran starting the War with Iran the first time or if he’s elected, the second time.

A vote for Giuliani increasingly is looking like a rubber stamp for a continuation of Bush II policy which will plunge us into another four years of darkness….


Les Aaron
The Armchair Curmudgeon.