Scott Ritter - What turned the hawkish Iraq weapons inspector into a dove?

Slate ^ | 9/25/02 | Michael Crowley

[finnman69]

I like the Stockholm theory

[finnman69]

ping

[anniegetyourgun]

I'm thinkin' it is the dirty pictures they have on him.....

[anniegetyourgun]

Or it could be the dirty ones they have of his mother....

[sheik yerbouty]

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

[dfwgator]

Could it have been.......SATAN?

[Malcolm]

LOL, that would be my first guess as well. He seems to excited about it.....

[Poohbah]

What caused Ritter to flip?

$400,000.

[GraniteStateConservative]

FNC dumped him because his rantings were unbelievable-- literally, not figuratively.

[The Great Satan]

Hell hath no fury like a warrior scorned. Remember Ritter's doppelganger, Timothy McVeigh. Remember Ajax in The Iliad. I'm sure Ritter's quite sincere, and also quite mad.

[Thoudothprotest]

I don't think Ritter is a "dove" per se.

He was a Marine and knows combat. I believe he is the only person in this whole Iraq debate with the experience and first hand knowledge to offer an accurate assessment of Iraq's capabilities.

I, for one, am sick of the smear job he's been getting. Instead of listening to the man, he has been called an outright traitor.

THAT is wrong.

[Destructor]

One word- money!

[Judith Anne]

I've listened to him. I still call him an outright traitor.

[bluester]

Hey you're a lone voice as far as that is concerned. And I agree with you! :)

[colorado tanker]

I think you're quite right.

[Poohbah]

He was a Marine and knows combat. I believe he is the only person in this whole Iraq debate with the experience and first hand knowledge to offer an accurate assessment of Iraq's capabilities.

He said one thing in 1998. He's now saying THE EXACT OPPOSITE in 2002.

Somewhere along the line, he's a lying sack of Clinton.

I, for one, am sick of the smear job he's been getting.

There are no victims, only volunteers. And you're sticking up for a liar.

Instead of listening to the man, he has been called an outright traitor.

Let's see...becoming a paid shill for Saddam Hussein is NOT treason in exactly what fashion?

[finnman69]

If he is not a traitor why is he hlping the Iraqi's with Anti US propaganda films?

[blau993]

I read EndGame when it first came out and found it to be a very schizophrenic book. The first three quarters of the book described Ritter's macho, confrontational dealings with the Iraquis and the lengths they would go to in order to conceal things and confound the work of the inspectors. The last quarter of the book then seemed to brush all of this off and say essentially what he is saying now -- that Iraq is not a problem. I think this all predated the movie and the money, but I don't know that for a fact. He is clearly an ego who does not like to have his opinions challenged. Maybe somebody rubbed him the wrong way. Who knows. He is one strange dude.

[mhking]

What caused Ritter to flip? That's easy...

Saddam promised him Boardwalk & Park Place

"Got loot?"