How could so many smart people be so stupid....

Here is an article from the NY Times (registration required) that discusses their failings when reporting on weapons of mass destruction before the Iraqi war.

I do not understand how so many people got this so wrong. I do not think that it takes a lot knowledge or common sense to realize that after 10 years of sanctions that Iraq's capabilities would be dimished. For me, this is not hindsight, I said it at the time. I did not expect no WMDs, but I did not think they had major capabilities. How could any self-respecting reporter not take Chalabi's info with great skeptism.

Futhermore, anyone who has watched the Middle East for anytime should realize that nothing comes easy in that region. Given all of the possible variablity in the region and our own admission before the war that our intel capability within Iraq was limited, How could anyone believe the Bush Administration's line on the cost and timeline? The scariest thing is that I believe the Administration really believed it.