Hoekstra: Bloggers can help digest Iraq documents ("Saddam Papers")

[sabra]

http://www.wwmt.com/engine.pl?station=wwmt&id=24602&template=breakout_local.html

Hoekstra: Bloggers can help digest Iraq documents

(NEWS 3) - Millions of pre-Iraq war intelligence documents are now being posted online, and two Republican lawmakers want bloggers' help in digesting them.

Senator Rick Santorum and Michigan Congressman Peter Hoekstra (R-Holland) say they lobbied the White House and intelligence leaders to release the material. It includes millions of pages of documents and audio recordings captured during U.S. military operations in Iraq.

Hoekstra chairs the House Intelligence Committee. He says most of the information is three to 15 years old -- and intelligence analysts should be looking for current and future threats instead of studying the past.

“This is a bold decision in favor of openness that will go a long way towards improving our understanding of prewar Iraq,” Hoekstra said in an online statement. “By placing these documents online and allowing the public the opportunity to review them, we can cut years off the time it will take to gain knowledge from this potential treasure trove of information. This decision effectively places a collar on the bureaucracy and unleashes the power of people and the Internet to help speed this process.”