• 10 ORIENTATION EDITION
July 8-10, 2013
Rice has no regrets
Former Secretary of State reaffirms Iraq War support on anniversary
by Joshua Fechter Two days before the 10th anniversary of the start of the Iraq War, a conflict that resulted in the deaths of 4,488 U.S. soldiers and thousands of civilians, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice reaffirmed her support for the war and the ouster of former President Saddam Hussein. “I would have overthrown Saddam Hussein again,” Rice said to a packed house at the Lady Bird Johnson Auditorium on Monday. The war began March 20, 2003, following the United States’ and United Kingdom’s allegations that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction and posed a threat to international security. A survey conducted later by the Iraq Survey Group found Iraq did not possess WMDs at the time of invasion, but intended to resume its weap-
ons programs if the United Nations lifted its sanctions. As National Security Advisor to President George W. Bush and later Secretary of State, Rice oversaw the war effort with other Cabinet officials including her predecessor Colin Powell and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. Part of her task included engaging in a media campaign to advocate the need for war with Iraq. “The problem here is that there will always be some uncertainty about how quickly he can acquire nuclear weapons. But, we don’t want the smoking gun to be a mushroom cloud,” Rice told CNN in a 2003 interview.
But, nothing of value ever comes without sacrifice and I believe that Iraq has a chance. It may not make it, but it has a chance to be a state that will not seek weapons of mass destruction, — Condoleeza Rice, Former Secretary of State
Jorge Corona | Daily Texan Staff
Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice gives a lecture at the LBJ School of Public Affairs. In a Q & A session after the lecture Rice reaffirmed her support of the Iraq invasion leading to the oust of Saddam Hussein but mentioned
The conflict formally ended on Dec. 15, 2011, and remaining U.S. troops left the country three days later. Rice said Monday that Hussein was a “cancer in the Middle East” that needed to be removed from the region, despite the lack of discovered WMDs and the deaths that resulted from the conflict. “It is absolutely the case that the loss of lives will never be brought back and any of us who had a part in that decision will have to live with the lost and maimed lives,” Rice said. “But, nothing of value ever comes without sacrifice and I believe that Iraq has a chance. It may not
make it, but it has a chance to be a state that will not seek weapons of mass destruction, will not invade its neighbors, will be a friend of the United States and will have democratic institutions that may, over time, mature.” Rice said if given the opportunity, the administration would have sought to understand tribal relations more thoroughly earlier and would have begun reconstruction from the country’s borders and worked inward toward Baghdad, not vice versa. Bobby Inman, Lyndon B. Johnson Centennial Chair in National Policy at the LBJ School of Public Affairs,
said that history would view the conflict as “one of the great fiascos.” “Unlike its approach toward Germany and Japan after World War II, the United States did not properly plan for how it would reconstruct Iraq’s government and economy after toppling Hussein’s government in a way that would transform the country into a successful democracy,” Inman said, adding, “when you do not look at the historical record and understand it, you are destined to make big mistakes.” This article was originally published March 19, 2013 as: Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice reaffirms Iraq War support on eve of 10th anniversary.
All that’s fit to print, show, listen by Jackie Ruth | Special editions staff
When you live in a city like Austin, it can be hard to keep up with everything that’s going on all the time. Luckily, there is no shortage of media outlets to discover when your favorite band is in town next, what’s going on in the Capitol or how the Longhorn football team is doing this season. Whether you prefer to read, watch or listen to your news, Austin’s got you covered. READ •The Daily Texan: This is the go-to news source for UT students, since it covers campus and local news as well as important world news. The student-run paper has news boxes all over campus and parts of West Campus, and it’s free! Support student journalism! • Austin Chronicle: A great weekly publication, es-
pecially for those who love reading about life and arts. Not that they don’t cover politics, the environment and other non-entertainment stories, but the Chronicle is known as the bastion of local culture. As a bonus, it’s also free and available on campus. • The Horn: The website offers lifestyle, sports and news to its readers, but per-
haps its best features are its blogs and Twitter account (@TweetTheHorn). The blogs are interesting pieces by UT students and the Twitter account is super interactive with followers, so make sure you keep up with both. • Texas Tribune: For students who want political news without any other distractions, the Austin-based
Tribune could be your onestop shop. Though the news isn’t necessarily limited to the city of Austin, it is often centered here in the capital of Texas. It’s a nonpartisan, nonprofit source of news online. • Texas Travesty: Not everyone enjoys the gravity of news, which is why the Texas Travesty is perfect for anyone who loves reading The Onion or watching Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert. Satire is sometimes just what you need, and the Travesty does not disappoint, with “news” about UT students and campus events, as well as a snarky Twitter account (@TexasTravesty). WATCH • KVUE: This station is
Austin’s ABC affiliate, and its reporters often have the latest in breaking news, whether on the air or online. There is also a page on the website allowing viewers to upload newsworthy videos and photos to share with the community. • KXAN: Austin’s local NBC affiliate, KXAN acts as the community’s investigative broadcast news team. It covers the same topics as other news stations – weather, sports, crime – but also takes a deeper look into the issues of the moment. • KTBC: Perhaps better known as “My FOX Austin,” KTBC is a channel whose team has a lot of personality. Meteorologist Scott Fisher runs an active Twitter account (@scottfisherFOX7), with almost 2,500 followers.
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Like KVUE, the news team at My FOX Austin wants the audience to get involved, so they ask people to text in votes on which of two stories they’d rather see during the broadcast, a segment called “It’s Your Call.” • Longhorn Network: The relatively newly-minted Longhorn Network covers all 20 sports at the university, as well as pregame and postgame shows. There is other UT-related content, too, like campus news, commencement ceremonies and even coverage of lectures or guest speakers. LISTEN • KUT (90.5 FM): This radio station is located in the Belo Center for New Media on campus. After recently expanding to sister-station 98.9 FM KUTX, which is all music, KUT now exclusively brings information about politics, community and culture in Austin and breaking news. The KUT team also collaborates with the Texas Tribune on some reporting. You can also listen online. • KAZI (88.7 FM): This radio station calls itself “The Voice of Austin” and plays hip-hop, reggae, gospel and jazz. If you’re wondering why it’s on this list, it’s because it also provides community information, independent local news and educational programs for its listeners. • The Zone (AM 1300): This is another news source for those sports fans, but this radio station is more convenient if you’re stuck in Austin’s traffic and you want to catch up on the sports news of the day or hear a play-by-play of the game. It’s also great because, unlike the Longhorn Network, The Zone is free and everyone can listen. • KLBJ (AM 590 and 99.7 FM): Not to be confused with KLBJ 93.7, this is Austin’s non-sports news radio station that doesn’t play music. It offers news from the local area, the state, the U.S. and internationally. It has a user-friendly website, with links to stories listed all the way down and split into categories. The website also provides podcasts for listeners who might have missed the morning show or another daily segment.