The ["sea of oil"] story should not have run. In view of the significance of the statements attributed to Mr Wolfowitz, rigorous checking should have taken place. The hazard of translating remarks from German back into the English in which they were originally made should have been apparent.
It concluded a week in which the Guardian apologised to the foreign secretary, Jack Straw, for locating him at a meeting he did not attend. It has not been the best of weeks.
I too should have seen the German sourcing and been more wary. But once the horse was out of the barn, I decided to adjust the post as the story developed rather than kill it entirely. Many thanks to the helpful posters on the thread, one of whom said I was "smarter than this." Well, perhaps, but not in this case. My bad.