May 5, 2008 2:03PM 

# Expert Opinion 

By [Gene Healy](https://www.cato.org/people/gene-healy) 

---

<a class="js-popover-trigger cursor-pointer popover-trigger" data-bs-placement="bottom" data-bs-trigger="click" id="popover-trigger"> 

SHARE 

</a> 

The back page of the Week in Review section of yesterday’s *NYT* features a symposium on “[How to See This Mission Accomplished](http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/04/opinion/04precede.html?_r=1&oref=slogin),” in which the *Times* asked nine experts to address problems going forward in Iraq. Since at least five of the nine were enthusiastic backers of the war — and three work for the American Enterprise Institute — this is something like asking the captain of the Exxon Valdez\* for his considered judgment on how best to conduct the cleanup. Hey *NYT*: next time, why not consult [someone who got it right](https://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=2988)?

\* Ironically enough, the Valdez’s [Wikipedia entry ](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exxon_Valdez_oil_spill#The_accident)places one “Able Seaman Robert Kagan” at the helm during the crash. [They’re everywhere](http://matthewyglesias.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/04/the_kagans_we_need.php).

##### Related Tags 

[Defense and Foreign Policy](https://www.cato.org/defense-foreign-policy) 

[![Creative Commons License](/build/cato_2020/images/creative-commons.svg)](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/) 
This work is licensed under a [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/).