Is Will Pitt Exceptionally Brilliant?

[HFishbine]

Soooooo. David Kay says he doesn't think WMD "ever existed." The spin doctors are now setting up the umpteenth defense of Bush by laying the premise that a lot of people thought Iraq did have WMD.

Not everyone did though, and a few people went beyond a general skeptescism to challenge the myths directly and publicly. Will Pitt and Scott Ritter are two who put their reputations on the line when they wrote "War on Iraq: What Team Bush Doesnt Want You to Know."

Shouldn't there be some reward for Pitt and Ritter? Shouldn't there be some satisfaction? Ritter especially was publicly derided (maybe Pitt too, for all I know). Is that going to stand? Are the pundints and politicians who expressed their certainty of the "threat," who failed to exercise any kind of intellectual examination of contrary evidence and who belittled those who spoke the truth; are they going to continue on, unaccountable?

Pitt, in his proven ability to discern the truth, has shown himself to be a far more capable journalist than Britt Hume, or Judy Woodroof, or Arron Brown, or Bill O'Reilly, or Geraldo Rivera, or Wolf Blitzer, or Peter Jennings, or Tom Brokaw, or Juan Williams, or Fred Barnes, or Bill Kristol, or Sean Hannity.

Yet, these people will remain in front of the cameras with the full authority of "being on TV," while all indications are there will be no vidication for those who were honest and correct and capable.

What can we do? Surely at least one of the people above deserves to be replaced for their incompetence. Surely Will Pitt is qualified to replace at least one of the blind pundits. Can we start an effort? Should we push for "Hannity and Pitt?" Perhaps strive to have just one of the Fox Roundtable replaced by one of the only journalists in America who got it right? Or should we just move on and leave Will to his private satisfaction?

[Beetwasher]

1. What Can We Do?

I know Will likes good scotch, so the next time I see him, drink on me!

[patricia92243]

2. It's all Clinton's fault -grrr

[fishnfla]

3. Get him a position in the new Dem WH

Press Sec'ty office

[Eric J in MN]

4. Dennis Kucinich was also unconvinced that Iraq has WMD (nt)

nt

[silverlib]

5. Yes, he is exceptionally brilliant!

Maybe his reward will come when we when this election!

Will Pitt's time is coming. I'm just haning on and can't wait to see him bask in due glory!!!

[Sagan]

6. Will Pitt? Bah!

Will Pitt is a no-good, low-down rotten weasel sidewinder of a horse-thief. Why, he once shot a man just for snorin' too loud!

:)

[GOPisEvil]

10. I thought he shot a man in Reno just to watch him die.

:P

[WilliamPitt]

11. Me and my uncle...

:)

[SPQR]

29. Actually

I believe he shot Janet Reno just to watch her cry.

[rock]

7. Exceptionally Brilliant? No.

Just plain brilliant. Yes.

[WilliamPitt]

8. I can live with that

:)

Thanks, everyone.

16 months and counting that this book came out. It's still right, as far as I know.

[HFishbine]

12. He was

a lot smarter than some supposedly brilliant people.

[brainshrub]

9. Will Pitt? Who's Will Pitt?

Never heard of him.

Unless you're talking about that auto-shop at the end of the steet: "Will's Pitt Stop".

[VelmaD]

13. Yup, smart as a whip...

and cute as a button too. ;-)

[Drifter]

14. Exceptionally Brilliant ?

or maybe Brilliantly Exceptional.

Cheers
Drifter

[markses]

15. I enjoyed Will's book

Many of us were fairly sure since the late 1990's that there were no WMD's in Iraq.

[kentuck]

16. Where is Scott Ritter and why hasn't David Kay apologized to him?

I remember Kay all over the TV bad-mouthing Ritter and saying he didn't know what he was talking about when he said there were no WMDs in Iraq. He was vehement about it. Now....he slinks off as he whispers that there are no WMDs in Iraq. He owes Scott Ritter and the rest of America an apology. Asshole!

[HFishbine]

17. Amen, borther!

Exactly, that's what I'm talking about. There are a lot of apologies due.

[JanMichael]

23. Damned straight! That Kay schmuck owes Ritter an apology.

Good for nothing know nothing repuke shithead.

[JanMichael]

18. While I think they did a brilliant job, and deserve mucho props...

...Ritter certainly put a "Reputation" (UN Weapons Inspector with international exposure over several years) on the line. Unless I'm wholly mistaken Pit was in the process of making one (At least in a bigger scope that that of DU and Lefty internet sites), not risking one, no harm in that though.

Back to your suggestion I would love to see Will get some airtime to counter balance the idiots that parade around as journalists.

Great idea!

[WilliamPitt]

19. Well

Had I put a book out saying there were no WMDs, and had WMDs subsequently been found, that would have been the end of my existence as someone worth listening to.

[JanMichael]

21. Hey I wasn't knocking your creativity.

Just the "reputations" line. I think that book created your existance as someone worth listening too (At least on a wide scale).

Now you've really got one, don't fuck it up:-)

[gasperc]

35. which is what makes you exceptionally brilliant

you understand the trappings that the Rethugs lay out periodically for Dems to carelessly step into. As Carlitto would say , you always got to be lookin for all the angles.

Just as it's jaw dropping that the deficit has climbed to $477billion with out a peep from Greenspan

and jaw dropping that Kay can pronounce that bad intelligence was at fault for the FACT that WMD has not been found yet

and equally jaw dropping that 19 maniacs can hijack four airplanes, smash them into three buildings, kill thousands and not a single person be fired for incompetence. Yet two third world countries get the crap bombed out of them all the while America hangs in yellow alert on the fear of a renewed attack while we are told we are safer?

it is no less jaw dropping that WMDs may yet be found between today and the November election at a time conviently halting a dangerous erosion in the President's approval rating.

Will, Truth out...don't stop

[davekriss]

66. I did not read your book

But I have read many of your essays here, at Truthout, and wherever else I've seen them pop up. If some WMD were found, I hardly think it would erode your credibility. Your talent is geniune; your perspective in league with the progressive side of life -- your voice will continue to be welcome for as long as it rages.

Now, if 29,984 illegal munitions showed up tipped in 500 tons of sarin, mustard gas, and vx and teeming with 25,000 liters of anthrax and 38,000 liters of botulism toxin -- well, then, alot of us would be scurrying into the corners of silence to examine our intuitions. But in our hearts we knew that wouldn't happen, and many of us spoke solidly from that center. Your voice, too, amongst the best!

Someone ought to send Scott Ritter an email reminding him that many of us think of him as a geniune American hero.

[Raven]

20. Of course he's brilliant! It's in the genes!!

Tee, hee....:hi:

[prolesunited]

25. Hmm...

Could you perhaps be biased? You did an excellent job. What a legacy. :-)

[Skittles]

26. I asked Will what you were like, Raven

when we met in Austin. The description he gave us - well, you should be very proud. :)

[La_Serpiente]

22. Exceptionally Brilliant? No

A Pretty Smart Guy? Yes.

What is the most admirable trait? His deep sense of justice :-)

[EV1Ltimm]

24. Here's what we can do to get him on tv...

Let's turn Pitt into a back-stabbing, ceo knob-polishing, do-anything-for-a-buck, egocentric prick... then maybe, JUST MAYBE, we can get him on cnn.

[BeHereNow]

27. Brilliant, brave and sexy too!

What a combination.
Far too threatening to the talking heads though.

You ask:
"What can we do? Surely at least one of the people above deserves to be replaced for their incompetence.
Surely Will Pitt is qualified to replace at least one of the blind pundits. Can we start an effort? Should we
push for "Hannity and Pitt?" Perhaps strive to have just one of the Fox Roundtable replaced by one of the
only journalists in America who got it right? Or should we just move on and leave Will to his private
satisfaction?"

The pundits are not blind, they are cowards
and no match for Will.
That is why they will not face him.
BHN

[PVnRT]

28. We are all Will Pitt!

He just set up a bunch of bots to praise him all the time. Didn't you get the memo? :evilgrin:

[9215]

30. I think this may happen in the near future

People are searching more for accurate info since all the BS of the Bushies is being exposed in the mainstream media. Those who sounded the alarm early will be in higher demand.

[Name removed]

31. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[JanMichael]

32. What are you talking about?

?

[diamond14]

33. recent characterizations of massive pollution in ground and surface

water in Iowa....including claims that there is ONLY 14 INCHES left of topsoil in Iowa....


despite posting here, water quality tables and reports from the EPA and the USGS and the STATE OF IOWA, covering over 30 years....and showing massive improvement in water quality IN IOWA....

no response to my posts, no thanks for the effort to find the tables of data and reports, at the writers request...and NO changes in the incredibly unbelievable nonsense perpetrated about the water quality in Iowa....

and the first time that crap occurred, I offered to even WRITE the correct scientific remarks, rather than see that crap put out....

P.S. and I wasn't the ONLY one to tell the writer of scientific errors....

[trumad]

34. I gotta chime in on this.

It's not just his first book that makes Will brilliant on this subject. It's how he absorbed what Ritter preached and took it to heart to develop a coherent strategy of excellent talking points. If you've ever listened to Pitt speak he combines all he has learned and tells an excellent story of deceit and deception. It's like a Greek tragedy!

[diamond14]

36. not brilliant at all about environmental chemistry...especially

in recent writings about Iowa groundwater and surface water...if you don't know anything about it...ask the experts...if you won't read about the environmental chemistry, than eliminate it from your writings, rather than lie...

his recent writings on soils and water pollution in IOWA are faux-news lies...and shameful, because when he asked for comments, 30 years of chemical data was posted for review, including simple summary reports for non-science people...all ignored and not responded to, because it didn't fit into the image....sad, to use skills to push mis-information....

[HFishbine]

37. Do you have some links?

Not that I'm overly concerned about Iowa environmental issues, but people could go a little further down this road if you could provide some links.

[diamond14]

38. pitt asked for comments on his recent rough draft sometime near

the end of last week...comments on pitt's rough draft continued through this Sunday, and at that time...pitt was done with the draft and published it, with NO changes...look at the comment thread, and you will find at least THREE posts from me (with links to EPA, USGS, and STATE of IOWA web pages), and TWO posts from an Iowan...all objecting to pitt characterizing only 14 inches of highly polluted soils and massive water pollution in Iowa....

the scientific data was posted for Iowa, including simple summaries....to show pitt that his comments were NOT true...yet pitt ignored that...and did not respond to it....and kept it in his writings about Iowa....faux-news lies...with the facts RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU....

[Raven]

40. Ahem, Amen?

I know I'm biased but I'll just bet that Will Pitt talked to some farmers...you know, the folks who are up to their elbows in the soil out there...I'll just bet. :-)

[WilliamPitt]

41. I talked to one or two farmers

or ten.

As for you, amen, I apologize for not getting back to you on the data you provided. That thread got long, I had to move again, and some other issues came along to steal my available time. At the end of the day, though, I went with the guys with dirt under their fingernails.

[Name removed]

47. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Name removed]

48. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[diamond14]

63. posted 30 years of chemical data on the pollution in Iowa....

with links and short summaries that even non-scientists could understand...and the reality of the environmental data is that the groundwater, surface water and soils in Iowa are OK...a great improvement since the EPA began regulating soils and water pollution in the 1970's....

.... as you responded to me "I had to move again and some other issues came along to steal my available time"....

your article cited massive pollution in Iowa, getting worse over years running from the early 1900's....

[diamond14]

42. talked to a farmer? but ignored FACTUAL information about

soils and water that was posted for him at his request...

one farmer can easily destroy his soils and pollute water...but that should in no way justify making global remarks about massive soil and water pollution in Iowa, covering a span of a century (from 1900 to present)...with absolutely NO effort to qualify his remarks...like..."gosh, I talked to a farmer in Iowa and he said there is only 14 inches of topsoil left on his farm"

as an environmental activist, spending the last 30 years, using my chemistry degrees and experience to FIGHT against those falsifying chemistry data....it is abhorent to see that same falsification coming out of a talented writer, who should be telling the truth....

[Raven]

44. Ah, excuse me, Amen, but

it's usually the Bushies who blame the victems...so its the farmers fault? I see. Where do you get your data?

[trumad]

39. snarf

IIIII...ssssaAAA Thinks he's pullin yurrrrssss leg old fishbine...

LOL

[diamond14]

49. see post #41 from the author.....nt

.

[Az]

43. I hope he is not exceptionally brilliant

Because we need more individuals like him. I hope he is simply independtly minded. Able to think for himself. I hope what he sees anyone can see. I hope that William Pit is common. I hope he is dime a dozen. Unfortunately right now few seem to be shining as brightly as he does and I worry that he is exceptional.

[diamond14]

51. "independent minded"....should NEVER ignore the science

and push faux-news about environmental pollution....

as an environmental activist, I have fought for the past 25 years against people who falsify chemical data to deceive the public....it saddens me to see anyone ignore the FACTS that are provided to them in such easy-to-understand posts...

see post no. 41 for lame excuse:

"I had to move again, and some other issues came along to steal my available time."

[Az]

54. Seems like a crusade

In reading through the thread I saw him respond to you. I am curious as why you will not discuss the matter with him. Instead you seem to be running around slamming any that have a positive thing to say about him. I expect him to be human. Humans make mistakes. If you talk to them reasonably about them they sometimes even correct themselves.

This seems to be the crux of the problem. Your reaction seems to be along the lines of a gotcha. I suspect that Will is doing what he does out of a desire to do the right things. If you have something to say about his path you need to present it in a nonhostile manner so that he can examine it without having to be defensive. When you go on the offensive people naturally dismiss your position as one tainted by a desire to win no matter what. Attitude can lose an argument long before the facts ever come into play.

Also keep in mind that just because you have a collection of numbers garnered from some location (albeit through genuine effort) this in no way confirms their validity. As Twain once said, there are three kinds of lies: Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics. Numbers can be tricky things. Generally a tool to make our understanding of things easier they can be twisted or misunderstood. In more nefarious hands they can be twisted into all manner of oddities. It is sometimes a better course to go with first hand experience(not always) over numbers. Particularly if the numbers are in direct opposition to experience. There may be something about the numbers being misunderstood.

[PVnRT]

74. You know

You could PM him and discuss this privately. But something tells me that you are utterly desperate to take your pissing match as far out into the open as you can. Nice and childish, that is.

[spindoctor]

45. Will Pitt, Scott Ritter....and Steve Chapman??!!

We all know where Will Pitt and Scott Ritter stand, but my nomination for the 2004 crystal ball award goes to the predominantly RW Chicago Tribune and their columnist Steve Chapman. On January 26th 2003 he wrote in his column:

<snip>
...In the first place, we may have to cope with uprisings and bloodlettings among groups that have been oppressed by the central government and would like to escape its control. In the second place, our efforts to keep peace and order could provoke some Iraqis to turn their fury on us -- in a repeat of Somalia.

If we launch the war over the objections of our friends, we may find none of them eager to put boots on the ground to help with reconstruction. So we could end up with 100,000 American soldiers pinned down indefinitely, undertaking the type of nation-building that Bush used to reject.

But nation-building may be the least of our burdens. A large force of U.S. soldiers and civilians stationed in the Middle East will furnish the equivalent of an all-you-can-eat buffet for Osama bin Laden. (Remember him?) Postwar Iraq promises to be a magnet for Al Qaeda operatives eager to resume the fight against America. If we can't prevent terrorist attacks in places like Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, imagine what we can expect in Iraq.

Making the problem worse is that the Middle East has a lot of terrorist organizations that have been preoccupied with Israel in the past, but may decide to use this opportunity to bloody its chief ally. Factions of groups like Hamas and Hezbollah may begin targeting Americans with a vengeance--and not just in Iraq.

Some of those groups, in the chaos of postwar Iraq, may get their hands on Saddam Hussein's chemical and biological weapons. Instead of advancing the fight against terror, going into Iraq may only plunge us into a wider conflict, while making us more vulnerable.

If occupying a country were so easy (for the man in the White House who boasted in election 2000 that he was opposed to nation building), then why don't the Israelis have peace on the West Bank? And how is Bush going to stop suicide bombers from attacking our forces, execute them after the fact? The Middle East is a quagmire that may make Vietnam look like a frat party. And our men and women in the military will pay the price, as will we all.

[TahitiNut]

46. "Will Pitt"??

I thought that was half of a sign carried by an unemployed olive cannery worker. :eyes:



:silly: Yeah... Will seems pretty bright. Articulate, too. He rites gud.

[RapidCreek]

50. I mean Will no offense but no he isn't

What he is, is extremely dedicated and focused. He knows nothing more than millions of other people spread across the globe. The difference is, he has made it his mission to scream from the rooftops that which is plainly obviouse....a mission for which I commend and thank him.

Seeing through the lies which this administration have consistently told requires no genious....and that's the sad thing about it. What it requires is a bit of interest in what is being said by those who would send us to war, a minimal amount of time to investigate their past actions, historical alliances and subsequent motivations and the ability and desire to contrast these things with the words that leave their lips. Keeping in mind that the vast majority of Americans are only motivated to engage in the above described thought processes when their own comfort is threatened, it is a thought process rarely implemented by most.

It is for this reason that I believe the draft should be reinstated. It puts the motivation to think, front and center into the minds of the average Joe....but more importantly front and center into the minds of the not so average Joe's. I suspect we would be hearing from quite a few "geniuses" if such a thing came to pass. Altruism, sensitivity, moral compass and level headed thinking would be at an all time high. The words of those who so cavalierly bandy about threats of armed intervention would become automatically suspect...particularily when their kids and their own asses are conspicuously absent from the firing line when it comes time to "pay the price of freedom". If it's a price everyone has equal responsibility to pay, it will be a price everyone will be equally interested in considering.

No the difference between Will and many others might be attributed to altruism or it may have a deeper origin. It most probably arises from a less superficial understanding of self preservation. An understanding that ultimately the effects of apathy and practiced arrogant ignorance spill outward and leave us all up to our necks in shit...not downward drowning only those who many of us like to feel are at the bottom.

Will possesses the skill of exposing and breaking down into bight sized chunks the complexities of deception for the mentally lazy and selfish. The fact remains, however, that until everyone is put into the position of being hungry, convincing them to put those chunks into their mouths is wishful thinking. Until that time, other "journalists" shall successfully pigeon hole Will as a cynic and a malcontent.

Ultimately it must be our mission to help people understand that altruism and social consciousness aside...it behooves them to take an active interest in what is going on around them. To question, always question, those who tell us they are an authority. To understand that it is never in "our best interest" to be ill-informed and to recognize the fact that any person or persons who suggests it is or takes steps to see to it that we are kept that way, has ulterior motives, particularly when they maintain that being ill-informed is smart. It's a dangerous road though, this mission....even if you can walk on the water...you might get nailed to a cross by the very people you seek to help. I commend Will for walking this road...it takes a big set of stones to do it. I try every day in little ways to do what he does on a grand scale....I do it because I hope humanity might one day evolve beyond the desire for instant gratification....that they might understand what is instant rarely lasts.

RC


Wow...what a stream of bla bla bla....hehehehe

[diamond14]

52. when writers distort science...it destroys their message....

either forget making scientific statements about things you know nothing about....or ask an expert to write the science for you...then, you can simplify it some for your article...

on this board...I have clarified science many times for the non-scientists....some of you may remember my extensively linked "YELLOW-CAKE" article, February 2003, which many scientists here found useful and accurate with only a few editorial changes....

despite my offers to review scientific writings, I find it somewhat disheartening when writers, with ZERO education or experience in science, choose to write just whatever sounds good after chit-chatting with one or two or ten farmers...

[Lars39]

55. You have more than made your point. You verge on alienating people.

This really sounds like something that you should have contacted him directly about. Grousing on a congratulatory thread about the honoree is crass.

[diamond14]

56. so, if the science doesn't agree....shoot the messenger ?

that's the faux-news approach....

[Lars39]

57. You have taken something public that should have been private.

[diamond14]

58. it was all posted for review on a previous thread,....there is nothing

private about the scientific data....

the writer asked for review comments on a draft....

I responded with the scientific data, links, and easy to understand short one minute summaries of the science, specially written for non-scientists to understand....

the writer chose NOT to correct his draft...


so now, shoot the messanger...that'll make all those scientific mis-statements justified, won't it???

[Az]

59. I believe you will find

It is not so much your case as it is your attitude that is garnering the reaction you are receiving. If you have real issues address them where they need to be addressed. To many here it may seem as though you are attempting to steal some of the appreciation we have for Will by attacking him. This may or may not be true but it is how it looks to many here. This makes you look small and spitefull.

[diamond14]

61. so, just ignore the science...SHOOT the messanger????

you can claim that I look like anything you can imagine...but it won't change the FACTS about ground water pollution, surface water pollution and soil pollution in the State of Iowa....sorry...

[RapidCreek]

62. I know not of what you speak...

That being said...I agree that language is important...and accuracy indespensible. Keeping that in mind...the language of your post would have one discount it's accuracy, valid or not.

Perhaps you should have someone schooled in the application of tact review your expressions of discontent before chit chatting with 33,000 DU members.

RC

[diamond14]

64. agree, it is reprehensible to distort scientific data to meet your

hypothesis...rather than look at the data, and then develop your hypothesis....


but unlike skillful writers of politics and social study discourse...science sounds awful upsetting to those with little scientific education or experience...

it's just the facts...and of course, you are welcome to go back and look at my constructive criticism, which was requested by the writer...

my only discontent is the writer chose NOT to correct mis-information before publication...as noted in writer's post #41....

I would be happy to chit-chat with any of the 33,000 DUers who wish to discuss the environmental data for the State of Iowa....but so far, it seems that everyone wants to ignore the FACTS and SHOOT THE MESSENGER...

[HFishbine]

53. Nice post -- good points. (nt)

[RapidCreek]

65. Thanks Fishbine!

RC

[sendero]

60. I must be...

... exceptionally brilliant also, since I knew there were no WMDs.

Oh, wait, I knew because Pitt and Ritter told me! Ok, I must be exceptionally something :)

[RapidCreek]

68. I knew because any truly homicidal dictator

would have used them when faced with threats of complete obliteration by the worlds largest superpower. It's really that simple. That's after all, what weapons of mass destruction are for.

That aside...all the the "very convincing" evidence put forward by Mr. Powell during his UN address was shoddy at best and intentionally contrived, at worst. Artists renderings are not evidence...and one presenting them as such obviously lacks that which the rendering is designed to represent. One has to wonder, in a day when 2 Foot resolution, four color satellite imagery is available to the public (http://www.keyhole.com/), why evidence comprised of grainy, low quality black and white imagery would be presented as a bases to start a war. One has to wonder unless one comes to the rather obvious conclusion that said "evidence" isn't evidence at all...but an attempt to bamboozle. Attempts to bamboozle are not evidence...quite the contrary in fact. They demonstrate that the presenter has less than honorable intentions that are based upon ulterior motives.

While Mr. Ritter's hands on experience can be used as proof of the lie...it's rather telling presentation was proof enough to anyone with an 8th grade intellect that it was what it was.

RC

RC

[Paragon]

67. Yes, in that fresh lightbulb sort of way

i.e. Over time, he gets a little dim on certain subjects. ;-)

But pop in another fresh lightbulb -- hopefully around the time there's a consensus Democratic candidate -- and he may just light the way.

[WilliamPitt]

69. lol

...better?...

:)

[Paragon]

71. Very Andy Warhol

Beats looking at soup cans. :silly:

[WilliamPitt]

72. I was about to PM you

:)

[Paragon]

73. You give me PMS sometimes

:silly:

[frank frankly]

70. yes and yes

yes