Posted 9:52 PM by Robert

Fussing

William Safire is again making a fuss over his allegations that a French company (CIS) "brokered" rocket fuel sales by China to Iraq in violation of United Nations sanctions.

But even assuming that such sales by China to Iraq are prohibited by the sanctions, and even assuming that a French company "brokering" such transactions also violates those sanctions, I simply cannot believe that the pro-liberationist cause is advanced by this kind of technical "gotcha!" fussing.

China is said to have made the sale. China is said to have shipped the fuel.

Not France. Not a French company.

This is not the way to argue the case.

UPDATE: This is more like it. And this.