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June 21, 2004
listen to Bill
Bill Galston is my boss (and friend). Therefore, I got a big kick out of Kenneth Pollack's article in The New Republic, entitled, "Mourning After: My Debate with Bill Galston." It begins thus:
Bill Galston is one helluva debater. In the fall of 2002, well before the invasion of Iraq, I faced Bill--a University of Maryland professor and a former colleague of mine in the Clinton administration--in a public debate, and he kicked my rhetorical ass. He did it by holding up a copy of my book, The Threatening Storm, and saying to the audience, "If we were going to get Ken Pollack's war, I could be persuaded to support it. But we are not going to get Ken Pollack's war; we are going to get George Bush's war, and that is a war I will not support." Bill's words haunted me throughout the run-up to the invasion. Several months ago, I sent him a note conceding that he had been right.
Posted by peterlevine at June 21, 2004 11:45 AM
Comments
For Pollack, it seems, it's still all about Pollack. It should have been clear at the time that Galston was right, but Pollack was enjoying the attention to much to change his position -- "haunted" or not.
Posted by: Fred Vincy at June 21, 2004 12:30 PM
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