October 16, 2014 - Bill Deresiewicz

EPISODE NUMBER: 11012 (October 16, 2014)
GUESTS: Bill Deresiewicz | C.J. Chivers
SEGMENTS: Abandoned WMDs in Iraq | Abandoned WMDs in Iraq - C.J. Chivers | Rick Scott and Charlie Crist’s Bizarre Debate | Bill Deresiewicz | Sign Off - Stephen’s Old iPod
SUIT REPORT: Black Suit | Gray Shirt | Dark Gray Patterned Tie
VIDEOS: Thursday, October 16, 2014

It was a serious show tonight, with much time devoted to NYT’s C.J. Chivers’ exposé on the real truth about WMDs in Iraq. When one thinks of the time and treasure lost in that country and in that war, it’s hard to make too many jokes, however. As I personally have family ties in Iran, and familiarity with the country, I can assure you that the actions of the Americans arming the Iraqis against them during the long Iran-Iraq war is not forgotten. Like the 2000s American-Iraq war, the Iran-Iraq war was waged for a decade, with much lost and its effects still profound so many years later. However, in spite of the history, most Iranians today like Americans and welcome the recent and delicate revitalization of diplomatic relations.

And … onto Florida! What a comedy jewel of a state. I thought our Governor’s race here in Illinois was bonkers, but this fan-bickering nonsense. Sheesh.

Also enjoyed the interview with Bill Deresiewicz. I agree with him wholeheartedly. This whole game of Ivy league University admissions, major selection and academic performance is not a good way to start off adult life. It seems to get worse and worse every year, as well, particularly with tuition becoming so expensive, even for regular ol’ places. It’s hard to not treat college like some kind of game when you are expected to make such significant financial sacrifices.

What did you Hubsters think of the show? Sound off in the comments. The show is off for a week!

* My thanks to Clem, who did the first two acts of the show and the images.

Abandoned WMDs in Iraq

• I’m just loving this feeling because I’m partying like it’s 2003. I’ve got some “Hey Ya!” cranking in the earbuds of my original iPod One. This thing is amazing. Did you know you can store up to 1,000 copies of “Hey Ya!”?
• I’m celebrating like it’s 2003 because, at long last, we’ve won the war in Iraq. [Graphic of Barack Obama and a member of ISIS]
• No, I’m sorry, guys. No, Jimmy, the earlier one. [Graphic of George H. W. Bush and Saddam Hussein] No, not that early. [Graphic of George W. Bush and Saddam Hussein] Yeah, that’s the one right there! There’s your sweet spot! Tell ’em why.

Fox News: “This is a big one. A bombshell new discovery by the New York Times, weapons of mass destruction were found in Iraq but it was kept secret. The Times reporting between 2004 and 2011, American troops found 5,000 chemical warheads. […]
“5,000 shells and bombs containing things like sarin and mustard gas. […] The story shows that, in fact, Saddam did still have weapons of mass destruction in 2003 when we invaded.”

• This vindication must really warm Dick Cheney’s - Arc Reactor? I don’t know what he’s got in there now.
• Nothing but nothing is going to kill my buzz over these WMDs. Not even the second line of every story about them.

“These were not the weapons we went to war over. These were old discarded weapons.”
“They were not the so-called weapons of mass destruction used to justify the invasion. They were from the old shells and warheads from the Iran-Iraq war.”

• [Stephen with his ear buds back in, singing] Shake it! Come on, shake it! Oo-oo! Shake it like a Polaroid picture! Beyonce’s, and Lucy Liu’s!
• [Takes earbuds out] I’m sorry. I didn’t catch a lot of that.
• Point is, Iraq made these awful weapons and America had a moral obligation to punish them and anyone who helped them.

“This has to be one of the bitterest ironies of the Iraq War. These are weapons that Iraq had manufactured with help from Western countries including the US, during its war with Iran in the 1980s.”

• Here’s what we did - Actually, it’s kind of a funny story. Back when Iraq was fighting Iran, two American companies provided hundreds of tons of thiodiglycol, a mustard gas agent precursor, including the company Cardinal Stabilizer, a specialty chemical firm from my hometown of Charleston, South Carolina.

• And this W-M-Discovery is news to everyone, because even “Congress…was only partly informed…” these weapons existed, “…while troops and officers were instructed to be silent or give deceptive accounts of what they had found.”
• It was sort of a “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” for the LGBTWMD community.

Abandoned WMDs in Iraq - C.J. Chivers

• The point is, the story proves once and for all that the war was completely necessary and justified. Here to say his story doesn’t say that is Pulitzer Prize winning reporter from The New York Times, reporter C.J. Chivers.

Stephen: Here’s my number one question. Proves we had WMDs there in Iraq. Why didn’t George Bush brag about this more, because the egg on his face is that there were no WMDs. Was he being just too humble here? Was the war so popular he didn’t want to run up the scoreboard at this point?
C.J.: These weren’t the WMDs he was talking about. These weapons were old discarded junk from about two wars before.
Stephen: Don’t try your Obi-Wan Kenobi “These aren’t the droids you’re looking for” on me.
C.J.: They weren’t even used as WMDs.
Stephen: So, they’re not dangerous at all?
C.J.: They’re dangerous. They’re used in local attacks and improvised bombs, where they were discarded in old stockpiles.

C.J.: This is a story about enlisted soldiers who had one of the most dangerous jobs on the battlefield in the last war. Who worked hard, served well, suffered something surprising and were at a minimum casualty-neglected, if not outright abused.
Stephen: Did the guys who found the stuff - they were injured by this?
C.J.: Many were not wounded. Some were wounded.
Stephen: Did they get a Purple Heart?
C.J.: Most of them did not.
Stephen: Because it had to be a secret?
C.J.: They didn’t get Purple Hearts for a variety of reasons, but among them is the Purple Heart system, by my estimate, is broken. There are four services that have different processes and different standards for getting the Purple Heart. Some of these members were not recommended for Purple Hearts. Others were by commanders and denied by the services. One particular incident - a Staff Sergeant had a Purple Heart given by the Secretary of the Army and someone several weeks later came along and took it off his chest.
Stephen: Why was it taken off?
C.J.: They said they erroneously issued it.
Stephen: Because the event was not supposed to have happened?
C.J.: That’s the question I have been asking them for many months.

ick Scott and Charlie Crist’s Bizarre Debate

• Nation, it’s Midterm season, and earlier this week, I gave you complete coverage of one of the most explosive races — the contest in Florida between Republican incumbent Governor Rick Scott and Democratic former Governor Charlie Crist. Last night, the two were scheduled to face off in a debate, and it was an opportunity for these gubernatorial candidates to show voters who is more natorial-guber-y. And this being Florida, right off the bean, things got very Florida.

Debate Moderator: We want to take a shot of the stage here at Bailey Hall in Broward County, and as you can see, the two candidates who were invited to take part in this debate, right now are not stepping up on the stage. Ladies and gentlemen, we have an extremely peculiar situation right now. We have Governor Charlie Crist. Florida Governor Rick Scott, our incumbent governor is also in the building. We have been told that Governor Scott will not be participating in this debate.

• Folks, I was worried about my guy, Republican-Governor-and-python-on-ecstasy, Rick Scott. But he had an excellent reason for not being there.

Debate Moderators: Governor Crist has asked to have a fan, a small fan placed underneath his podium. The rules of the debate that I was shown by the Scott campaign say that there should be no fan. Somehow there is a fan there. Governor Crist, do the rules of the debate say that there should be no fan?

Gov. Crist: Are we really going to debate about a fan, or are we going to talk about education and the environment and the future of our state?

• Who gives two (bleep) about the environment or education? It’s Florida. Everyone needs a fan!
• And I’m not alone in being a fanfan because, even though Scott came out three minutes later and they held a heated hour-long debate on a variety of topics, all anyone is talking about food is fangate!
• Folks, clearly for Scott’s campaign, last night blew. And if you turn the switch the other way, it sucked.
• Now I don’t blame Crist forwanting to bring his own coolant. Based on that skin tone, I’d say his core temperature’s around 450 degrees.
• But the fan wasn’t Rick Scott’s only objection last night. He had an even better reason fornot taking the stage.

Moderator: Governor Scott, why the delay in coming out over a fan?

Gov. Scott: I waited to be — until we figured out if he was gonna show up. He said he wasn’t going to come to the — uh — he was — he said he wasn’t gonna come to the debate. So why come out until he’s ready?

• Right, he was just waiting in the wings for seven minutes to figure out whether the guy on stage was gonna come to the debate. Bottom line, as much as I wish it wasn’t true, last night in Miami, Rick Scott was… blown away.

Interview — Bill Deresiewicz

My guest tonight is the author of “Excellent Sheep”, about the failure of Ivy League schools. You don’t have to read it because it’s not on the test.

Bill: I spent four years after college before I figured out what I really wanted to do because I didn’t do the right things in college, because I didn’t shut out all the messages everybody else was giving me. I majored in the wrong thing. Maybe I went to the wrong college myself. In the end, it was a longer process than it needed to be.
Stephen: What was your major?
Bill: I was actually a biopsychology major. […] It’s what they now call cognitive science. It’s what I thought I could do. My dad was a scientist and immigrant. He pushed me in that direction. I should have been an English major. I did a Phd. in English because I figured out that’s what I needed to do to make me happy to feel like I was contributing.
Stephen: So It doesn’t matter what makes Dad happy. He’s an immigrant! You’re breaking my heart! You’re breaking my heart! I am so disappointed in you, Billy! We didn’t come to this country for you to smoke pot and play Madden in your dorm room!
Bill: You know what? I think I broke his heart, too, but sometimes that’s what you have to do because you’re living your life and not your parents’ lives.

Sign Off - Stephen’s Old iPod