Problems with Anticipation

From the AP:

"I don't think anybody anticipated the level of violence that we've encountered," Cheney said. He said much of the continuing violence has its roots in "the devastation" that 30 years of Saddam Hussein's iron-fisted rule "had wrought on the psychology of the Iraqi people."

(You know, sooner or later, they ought to work on that whole 'anticipation' thing. Seems like it might be a useful skill for them to have.)

Now, you might be wondering, if in fact the violence had its roots in 30 years of Saddam's rule, why the heck they didn't take that into account. Since 'Saddam's iron-fisted rule' was a key component of their case for war, it's not like they weren't aware of it.

Cheney needs to get out more if he doesn't know 'anybody' who anticipated the level of violence we've encountered. I personally know several, and read many more. Did he think all those people talking about a 'quagmire' and 'Vietnam' were suggesting there might be a climate change, so Baghdad would get all muddy and humid?

Now, we all know that Cheney would have us believe that he didn't think it would get this bad, since people are asking him about his comment a year ago that the insurgency was in 'its last throes.' Though now he'd have us believe that he was talking about some long-term march-of-history type turning point.

But what he said was:

"The level of activity that we see today from a military standpoint, I think, will clearly decline. I think they're in the last throes, if you will, of the insurgency."

So, yeah, sure, in geological time, there will be a decline, but in terms of the activity we see 'today' clearly declining, and actually being 'in', not 'beginning' the last throes, not so much.

Does Cheney really expect us to think he is serious? No, I don't think so. The message behind the message is pretty clear. He has complete contempt for such archaic concepts as 'honesty' and 'truth'. Statements like this are his way of dismissing those naive enough to believe such things matter.

Of course there were people who anticipated what has happened, just the same way there were people who anticipated exactly what happened in New Orleans as Katrina bore down. Just the same way there were people who anticipated that their tax cut proposal would lead to enormous deficits. Just the same way there were people who anticipated (in painful detail) the various disasters the administration's policies have wrought.

It doesn't matter. They aren't in power. Cheney is.

He doesn't need to even pay attention to what those people say. He can act like they don't even exist. That's how powerful he is. And he's perfectly happy to show the rest of us he doesn't care about what we think, either.

It's not just Senator Leahy he's willing to dismiss, rudely.

Update: I was just reminded of this exchange:

Meet the Press: 03/16/03

Russert: If your analysis is not correct, and we’re not treated as liberators, but as conquerors, and the Iraqis begin to resist, particularly in Baghdad, do you think the American people are prepared for a long, costly, and bloody battle with significant American casualties?

Cheney: Well, I don’t think it’s likely to unfold that way, Tim, because I really do believe that we will be greeted as liberators.

Even Tim Russert anticipated the possibility of the violence we've encountered.