May 7, 2004

SCRAMBLE THE BLACK HELICOPTERS (via Bob Tremblay):

U.N. Warns Oil-for-Food Companies on Documents (Fox News, May 06, 2004)

The office of the senior U.N. official in charge of the scandal-plagued Iraqi oil-for-food program has sent letters to companies involved in the program telling them they should not hand over any documents or information without first clearing it with the United Nations.

According to the letters obtained by Fox News, the companies "should retain and safeguard" any documents related to the program and should provide them to U.N. officials upon request. The letters came from the office of Undersecretary-General Benon V. SevaN, though aides signed the letters on his behalf.

One of the letters was sent to a company called Cotecna Inspection S.A., which for five years had the job of authenticating all goods being shipped into Iraq under the oil-for-food program.

It's also the company that once employed the son of U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Annan has said his son Kojo stopped working for the company before the Cotecna contract was awarded.


Or what? They send the UN army to arrest you?

Posted by Orrin Judd at May 7, 2004 12:54 PM
Comments

I'm still struck by how little play this story is getting. It's probably the biggest corruption scandal in history, but the media isn't exactly all over it. On the other hand, the New York Times ran over 40 stories about the Augusta Golf Club issue.

Posted by: L. Rogers at May 7, 2004 1:30 PM

Water over the dam, I think; but if the story was getting any hold, the prisoner brouhaha killed that off.

Another example, of many, about giving hostages to fortune.

Bush could end up losing his election.

Posted by: Harry Eagar at May 7, 2004 2:20 PM

Not over torturing Arabs, that's getting him votes.

Posted by: oj at May 7, 2004 3:59 PM

I'd agree with Harry but for the fact that Bush's opponent is Kerry.

Posted by: jefferson park at May 7, 2004 4:32 PM

Kerry has certainly been a very poor candidate. But, the press very badly wants to get rid of Bush.

I've noticed how the press conference by Kerry's former shipmates on Tuesday got very little coverage. It was pretty damning, but how many people heard about it?

I live in the Bay Area and I have not seen this Oil-For-Food scandal mentioned once by the San Francisco Chronicle. Not a surprise.

Well, Bush has lots more money than Kerry, enthusiastic volunteers, and a pretty savy campaign manager. We'll see.

Posted by: L. Rogers at May 7, 2004 7:05 PM

Not over torturing Arabs but over losing his grip.

I was a little surprised, last night, when the guy in the newsroom who has the pictures of the Twin Towers burning and Saddam captured posted over his desk burst out that the Iraq war was a mistake.

A little sign, one of several I've seen, that people who were or were willing to be with Bush on antiterrror are thinking he isn't getting the job done.

Posted by: Harry Eagar at May 7, 2004 8:28 PM

Ah, should have known, when an acorn falls on Harry the sky is coming down.

Posted by: oj at May 7, 2004 8:43 PM

Why, if democracy does not take hold in Iraq, is that the fault of the U.S.A.?

Posted by: Peter B at May 7, 2004 10:11 PM

And considering that Iraq has _never_, since Sumerian times, had a modern, Western-style democratic government, and that the past year is the nearest that Iraqis have ever had to a really free government...

Posted by: Joe at May 7, 2004 10:23 PM

Rather than the silly approve/disapprove questions that pollsters love even though they tell you nothing, how about the following question: Do you think the US is being too harsh/too lenient/just right in Iraq? My guess would be "too harsh" would be bringing up the rear...

Posted by: brian at May 7, 2004 10:58 PM

I have this bad habit of basing my opinions on evidence. Mea culpa.

Posted by: Harry Eagar at May 9, 2004 4:33 AM

Harry:

Simple case of Egoism--makes one arrogant without cause, but hardly fatal.

Posted by: oj at May 9, 2004 8:06 AM
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