Wag the Dog is hog wash as political critique it combines the two worst strain of criticism against NATO intervention into one. From the left that intervention was American imperialism see Printer’s critique and from the right that Clinton’s support was about Lewinsky. Which true or not ignores the fact that whatever Clinton’s motives were there was a genocide going on and with NATO intervention it was unlikely to stop.

It also makes this argument by applying a fictional set of fact that are fundamentally different from reality in an important way. Namely the war was real, was happening whether NATO acted or not, and NATO’s action help stop a genocide. It may have luck into relevancy later with the war of terror but it’s politics at the time we’re offensive. And it was very actively used used by those who opposed invention on fairly dubious grounds.