Refusal to listen is White House SOP

To the editor:

The criticisms from retired generals recently directed at Defense Secretary Rumsfeld are telling but misdirected. Although their respect for military traditions prevents these loyal Americans from climbing the chain of command with their criticism, they should be directing comments at commander in chief Bush. The secretary serves at his whim and follows his bidding.

Their beef is that these civilian leaders did not pay attention to the military advice they were being given when they dreamed up the invasion and occupation of Iraq. Despite making so many mistakes, even now they learn nothing and continue to claim success when failure is transparently obvious to even the most casual observer. It is clear that, prior to the invasion, the Bush-Cheney White House and supporters in Congress put ideology and the tainted advice that supported their ideology ahead of contrary evidence and advice from experts. The latter they ignored because it suited neither their preconceived judgments nor their ideological commitments. Many thousands of Americans and Iraqis have paid the price.

However, this refusal to listen to advice from experts or to acknowledge what the evidence suggests is not limited to Iraq. Rather, it is standard operating procedure in this White House and among Republican supporters. Time after time, from climate destruction to toxic chemicals to sex education in schools, they ignore or suppress scientific data and reject advice from experts; they ignore the reality that contradicts policies because the policies are grounded in a blind commitment to uninformed ideology.

ALAN JOURNET, Cape Girardeau