The Washington Post noted that the U.S. relied upon forged documents as "evidence" of an Iraqi nuclear arms program. The forged documents -- letters -- were replete with "crude errors," "including names and titles that did not match up with the individuals who held office at the time the letters were purportedly written":

"We fell for it," said one U.S. official who reviewed the documents.

This isn't satire. That's what our government said. Very believable. Either our intelligence officials are being -- what's the word I'm looking for -- dishonest, or they're simply incompetent.

Moreover, the same article explains that Powell's claim -- repeated by Bush in latest State of the Union address, and presented to thre U.N. is Powell's recent presentation -- that aluminum tubes ordered by were clearly intended to be used in Iraq's purported nuclear weapons program, appear to be patently false.

Bush: Reluctant. Cowboy.

I'll accept cowboy.