Business Alliances

The Financial Times reports that the US might finally be having second thoughts about doing business with one Victor Bout, Ukrainian arms dealer known as "the merchant of death." Bout earned this moniker by supplying all sorts of stuff to various factions fighting internecine conflicts in Africa. Apparently this sort of freelancer is exactly what the CPA ordered in Iraq, where Bout flies cargo jets in and out of Baghdad International Airport, hauling supplies and whatnot.

Senator Russ Feingold of Wisconsin was the person who brought this up in yesterday's Senate hearing. In response, Richard Armitage played dumb, along with Paul Wolfowitz--both expressed official "surprise," in yet another Captain Renault moment. The Deputy Secretary of State even allowed the diplomatic equivalent of "he's scum," while Wolfie preferred to let sleeping dogs lie--by lying himself, if you ask me.

Not knowing that Bout was doing business in Iraq is like not knowing that the Crips and Bloods sell drugs in Los Angeles. I guess you could get into some Rumsfeldian blank verse and talk about known unknowns, although this sort of deniability is just that--a means of sheltering officials who can and should be held responsible for their decisions.

Which brings me to the whole charade regarding the hearings (I'm sure you can still catch the RealVideo feed on C-Span). Wolfowitz, Armitage, and the whole sorry crew keep playing the unknown known unknown theme like it's some sort of combination smart bomb/trump card. Everything is predicated upon being "at war," which apparently is some sort of euphamism for "we don't plan." To which I say: bullshit.

I think the public has a right to see what sort of plans were being made, if only to recognize just how absurdly inaccurate Team Bush was. IF by some sort of ultimate bureaucratic fuck up there really are no plans, then the public should know that too. Because no plans would mean that the State Departments and War Departments aren't doing their jobs. Actually, Wolfowitz alluded to several plans, sort of a downward spiral from best to worst case, but managed to sweep them under the rug before anyone pressed him to offer details of said plans. I expect they're classified anyway, but forcing him to bring that up would at least be something.

So, in the end, it looks like Bout will get the boot. No tears for Victor, though. The guy has made millions trading on death and suffering. I'm sure he'd call himself a dedicated free marketer, even if a great deal of his money is the result of government contracts. No word on how he sleeps at night.

The business of America...