Hope springs eternal at the New York Times

From the main editorial today: “The Worst-Case Scenario Arrives”

The first casualty is likely to be the effort to use coercive diplomacy to disarm Iraq. The unity of the Security Council last November in backing Resolution 1441 without a dissenting vote, combined with the movement of American forces to the Persian Gulf region, changed the equation with Iraq. Though Saddam Hussein is far from full disarmament, he has given ground in recent months by permitting the return of arms inspectors after a four-year absence and, more recently, by beginning to destroy illegal missiles. With more time and an escalation of pressure, Mr. Hussein might yet buckle. (Emphasis added)

The NYT reminds me of that Bugs Bunny cartoon where he tells Yosemite Sam: “I dare you to step over this line”. “I’m a stepping!” declares Sam. Bugs: “Well, I dare you to step over this line.” The difference is that every time Hans Blix and the NYT feel that the pressure on Saddam Hussein is growing, they say “Comply with this modest concession.” He does and they cry: “He’s cooperating!” Meanwhile, the goal of disarmament is miles away.

Always another ultimatum - never enforced, another threat – consequences delayed, more debate, more inspections, more time, always more time. Twelve more years? Twenty?

The United States cannot back down now. If we do, the message to the Islamofascists will be loud and clear: split world opinion with appeals for peace, use economic carrots, and put on a microscopic display of compliance and you can paralyze any forceful response. James Lileks recently had a Bleat where he painted a scenario, six months after a hypothetical nuclear attack on Baltimore. He asks: would we respond in kind if we found evidence linking the nuclear holocaust to a terrorist nation?

We’d never do it. We’d hold televised benefits for Baltimore. We’d all remember the victims of 5/23. We’d buy the DVD compilations of news footage, archive the papers that landed on our stoops the day after. We’d find life returning to normal, eventually - but we’d never feel at ease again. The worst thing ever had happened, and to our surprise the world hadn’t ended. But the world had changed. Our better nature had prevailed - and we were certain to suffer again because of it, right up until the day we lashed out and became everything we never wanted to be.

The good news: that’s not going to happen.

The bad news: we’re going to war, to make sure it doesn’t.

Failure to take action against a sworn enemy of the United States – that would be the “worst-case scenario.”