Using imagination could have prevented attacks, Clarke says

To combat the threats the United States faces with The War on Terrorism, former Assistant… To combat the threats the United States faces with The War on Terrorism, former Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs Torie Clarke stressed the importance of imagination in the Pentagon.

“Prior to [September 11, 2001], it was unfathomable that someone would take planes and fly them into buildings,” Clarke said Thursday evening in the William Pitt Union Ballroom as part of a Pitt Program Council lecture.

Clarke spoke of the archaic structure of the Pentagon’s polices in the late 1990s. Focused on conventional attacks rather than using its imagination to prevent the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, the Pentagon failed to see the vulnerability of the nation to an unconventional attack.

“Change is an uncomfortable thing,” Clarke said while speaking about the Pentagon’s transformation.

Clarke added, “We need more people in government to say the things that other people don’t want them to say.”

Clarke also recognized the importance of fair and accurate coverage of The War on Terrorism. Embedding more than 700 journalists with military units during Operation Iraqi Freedom, Clarke felt it was important to give the American public a front-row seat to the conflict.

“We had an obligation to tell the people … it was the right thing to do,” Clarke said.

Not everyone in the administration agreed with her, though.

“A very senior official thought it was a wacky idea,” Clarke said.

Clarke’s idea helped provide a context to Operation Iraqi Freedom. The press was able to inform the public about the conflict even when the news was shocking and difficult, like the incident involving a van full of civilians that was shot at after continuing to approach a checkpoint after warning shots were fired.

“Bad things happen, and the best way to deal with them is to put a big spotlight on them,” Clarke said.

Clarke also discussed the importance of a responsible news media.

“The news media needs to step up to the plate,” she said.

According to Clarke, “We’ve come to a bad place where fewer and fewer people get their news from somewhere other than a big media source.”

Clarke faced criticism in the question-and-answer session after the speech. Many of the questions were aimed at the conflict in Iraq.

“There were 18 different ways the Iraqi regime could’ve come forward if they truly did not want this war to happen,” Clarke said.

Protests were held during the Clarke speech outside the William Pitt Union. Organized by the International Socialist Organization and the Campus Anti-War Network, the protesters were chanting, “No more Bush.”

“Bush is involved in an illegitimate war. All the justifications he made for it were false,” protester Stuart Easterling said.