Posted on 01/23/2006 9:23:10 PM PST by Extremely Extreme Extremist
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The $25 billion American reconstruction effort in Iraq was hobbled from the start by understaffing, a lack of technical expertise, bureaucratic infighting, secrecy and rising security costs, The New York Times reported on Monday.
Staffing shortfalls and contracting battles between the State Department and Pentagon created delays of months at a stretch, the newspaper reported on its Web site, citing the first official history of the reconstruction program, assembled by the office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq.
The report, to be published in the newspaper on Tuesday, said the document was dated December 2005. It begins with secret prewar planning for reconstruction of Iraq and touches on nearly every phase of the program through 2005.
The report comes amid rising concern among Americans about President George W. Bush's policy in Iraq, where billions of dollars have been spent on a reconstruction effort that critics say has yielded relatively modest results.
The document also expresses concern about writing contracts for an entity with the "ambiguous legal status" of the Coalition Provisional Authority, the newspaper said. And it said "seemingly odd decisions" on responsibility for aspects of the reconstruction have been recounted repeatedly.
"It almost looks like a spoils system between various agencies," Steve Ellis, a vice president and authority on the Army Corps of Engineers at Taxpayers for Common Sense in Washington, told Times.
"You had various fiefdoms established in the contracting process," said Ellis, who read a copy of the document.
The newspaper said it obtained a copy of the report from a person at a closed forum at which roughly two dozen experts from outside the Special Inspector General's office debated the report.
A spokesman for the office declined to comment on the report to The New York Times besides saying it was highly preliminary. "It could change significantly before it is finally published," spokesman Jim Mitchell told the newspaper.
I forgot to ask... How's reconstruction in New Orleans coming along???
It could be worse... Iraq could look like the NY Times' stock price.
Iraq Rebuilding Hobbled by Range of Woes, Especially the Reporting by the NY Times
I bet the Iraqi Telegraph and Telephone Company has better long-term upside potential.
Well, that settles it, things are going pretty damn good in Iraq.
Sounds like the Slimes is comparing it to its own rat's consortium of loozas in the DNC.
It's a quagmiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiirrrrrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeee.
Yep. Indeed rebuilding Iraq is hobbled by woes such as the NYT.
BUSH IRAQ POLICY FAILING: IRAQI PLAYGROUND SWINGSET NOT PUT UP YET. HALLIBURTON MAY HAVE SENT SWINGSET WITH BOLT MISSING
I can understand why the NY Times believes they are experts in woes:
http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bc?s=NYT&t=2y&l=on&z=m&q=l&c=
Well if Murtha and Kennedy said it, then it MUST be TRUE!!!
(Sarcasm)
At what point, does the NY times constant need to undermine our country, approach treason? If this pattern of trying to undermine our country, during a time of war, doesn't rise to the crime of treason, when taken in totality, there is no way to ever charge anyone with treason. It's time to begin writing letters to our congressmen, demanding that this paper be brought up on charges of treason, along with the editorial board, the editor, and all the major stockholders. I am personally going to write my represenatives, and senators in the morning, and demand an investigation. I would hope we could begin a grassroots effort, to have them put before the courts, and judged. It is high time. I am far from a right wing conservative, and I've personally had all I can take, I urge others, to do write their congressmen and call, demaniding this come to an end.
This is one of those standard LMSM articles about an article - it feels like the Seinfeld season where it was a show-in-a-show concept.
In writing this the NYT is being devious and Reuters, by repeating without even having to do some footwork, is simply pathetic.
The $25 billion American reconstruction effort in Iraq New Orleans was hobbled from the start by understaffing, a lack of technical expertise, bureaucratic infighting, secrecy and rising security costs, The New York Times still hasn't reported on Monday.
Staffing shortfalls and contracting battles between the State Department and Pentagon NO mayor and LA governor's created delays of months at a stretch, the newspaper still hasn'treported on its Web site,
That's amazing...it looks just like the one in Vegas!!!
It was a classic case of Monday-morning quarterbacking with an ivory-tower perspective. Since the IG report attacks the Bush Administration, that's the side the NY Times takes. If the Administration waited to pay the people, and rioting ensued, the NY Times would criticize the Administration for ignoring the obvious facts on the ground. The bias gets more and more pronounced and the backlash continues. Soon the NY Times will be read exclusively by one coffee klatch on the Upper West Side.
NY Times rebuilding hobbled by range of woes: Irate
Roto-Reuters ^ | 01-23-2006 | Rot-Reuters
Posted on 01/24/2006 12:23:10 PM EST by FreeKilly Freekedout FreeKeys
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The $25 million New York Times reconstruction effort in New York City was hobbled from the start by understaffing, a lack of technical expertise, bureaucratic infighting, secrecy, rising security costs, and the outrageous collaboration of politicians to give prime downtown real estate to the Sulzbergers by abusing eminent domain.
Donald Trump was quoted as saying, "The New York Times is now reeling from so many huge mistakes by reporters and management that people are saying it's one of the worst newspapers in America." Indeed, the Times itself admitted as much in its editorial of January 13th, when it said "...there's a difference, even in publishing, between the lies we tell about ourselves and the lies we tell about others. It is a rare publisher that troubles to fact-check an author's claims, especially in times when proofreading can seem like too much trouble."
As if that weren't enough, Times Watch then went on to present the "Top 10 Lowlights of the New York Timesof 2005." Other irate news watchers chimed in:
"I'm not so old as the Gray Lady, but it seems to me the working motto of the New York Times has always been 'All the news that fits our agenda,' not just since its various story-fabrication scandals came to light." -- Rick Gaber
.
"The Times' new motto: 'all the news that others find unfit to print'."-- Don Luskin
"Like the activist who loves The People but despises every actual person he meets, the Times’ editorial page takes liberal stands when the issue is safely abstract -- but when it comes to the paper’s profits and political battles, the Little Guy can get bent." -- Matt Welch
And finally, to add insult to injury, The New York Times is being sued over its motto. Check out The Fat Lady's Comical Self-Importance as well.
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