I agree with him the war wasn't only down to the Lobby. Arguments that oil played no part because 'if we wanted oil we would just go to market' are jaw-droppingly and rather usefully juvenile. The 3 trillion price tag doesn't look too bad against the 30 trillion worth of the black stuff experts say Iraq sits on. Read Jim Kunstler's column at Clusterfuck Nation today; if he is only half right, invading Iraq makes a lot of sense from an American interest point of view. Things may get ugly sooner than people think, and control of supply ensures the world's biggest user, the US military, can keep on truckin', even if all they're doing is guarding the extraction, production and transport of it back to the Homeland, where the way of life is as we all know 'non-negotiable'. The other aspect of the oil argument is the absolute need to keep petro-transactions in dollars. Saddam threatened to move to Euros; bye bye Saddam.

Certain Lobbyists clearly saw the historic opportunity all this afforded their designs, particularly the Oded Yinon thesis which was furthered and formalised by the Clean Break team and PNAC, then carried into the Bush admin. Throw in the drooling military contracting community (after the Lobby, the firmest controller of Congressional and Senate votes) and a Hill full of smooth, calculating opportunists practiced in running with the herd – plus of course the rah-rah aggression and racism unleashed by 911 – and you have a perfect storm, a vortex most of the Western world fell into.

I didn't, nor did Antony or yourself. Nor did Obama; but most everyone he has tapped did, and how. I am trying my level best to remain hopeful about this.

All of these facts are shocking yet uncontroversial; they are daily life in the Jewish state. A haze of misinformation, outright lies and Holocaust guilt cloud this issue the world over. The occupiers are the eternal victims. Critics tell me that the Palestinians deserve their fate, led by hateful leaders."

I like this guy.