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| quote: | Originally posted by Shakka
When this is all said and done (and who knows how long it will take), several of us will be proven wrong, and several of us will be proven to have been correct. If I am ultimately wrong, I will gladly admit it, however I fear that when and if the WMD's are finally found and/or accounted for, there will be an equal amount of BS rhetoric from opposition groups claiming evidence was planted/falsified or simply created for political and financial gain.
One of many things that bothers me as of late is how skeptical and critical people can be about the U.S. administration while at the same time casting such non-critical and trusting opinions of countries like Iraq and people like Saddam Hussein. What good can be said about a brutal dictator? What has history taught us about dictators? Certainly not much positive. At least Bush has to answer to the people, congress, and his cabinet. Hussein didn't have to answer to anyone. Let's say I'm Hussein--I have my own country. I call the shots, I can do whatever I want within the confines of my country without any fear of reprocussions for my actions--until someone else steps in. Why would a man have a nuclear reactor built in the 3rd most oil rich country on the face of the Earth?? The man always had ambitions for WMD's and factually posessed them when he kicked inspectors out in '98. Are we to believe that he proceeded to destroy said weapons after he kicked out the inspectors? Remember that Hussein pretty much answered to no one. I think it's far more foolish to believe he simply destroyed the weapons instead of perhaps suggesting that he concealed them VERY WELL once there were no inspectors there to monitor what he was doing? And let's also not forget (even though it's minor IMO) that the Al Samoud missiles he posessed violated UN sanctions as well and alone were a material breach.
Like I said, if I end up being wrong, then I'll admit that I was wrong, but at this point I'm not ready to say there aren't WMD's in Iraq. I think that as more and more of the higher ranking "deck of cards" members are found, we'll get closer and closer to the truth. |
I think that was pretty well said, Shakka, and I understand this point of view fairly well. I guess my point of view is that although he is a dictator, and although it's good to have one less crazy fool in charge of a country around, the means and justification for us to oust and invade that country is suspect. There are many dictators out there that are in need to being eliminated, but the justification of performing such actions need to be substantial, otherwise a backlash can result (which is what we are experiencing now).
The difference between your view and my own in regards to someone eventually being right and wrong is this: I sincerely hope I am wrong. I want to be wrong. Unfortunately, you cannot share that sentiment, because if your view is wrong and this war is not justified, we have a major scandal on our hands. I want WMD to be found, and I want there to be justification. I have always said that if Saddam was indeed an imminent threat to the world, then our stance for invasion is justified. So I really hope for our sake and for the sake of the U.S. and British credibility that there is evidence of Saddam being an imminent threat. As it stands now, however, given the evidence pointing to slant and forgery, that threat is seemingly exaggerated.
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Whence September dusk grows crisper still,
with leaves all crimson conquered,
I yearn to shout,
and dance about,
and stick pickles in my honker...
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Did Bush really say that? Which country were the Iraqi WMD supposed to have been smuggled to? 
). Hopefully Bush is not referring to that "information" 
). Realpoliticians know that Saddam has been a deceiver and a potential future threat. They don't hesitate to play dirty themselves, and approve the use of Machiavellian methods when necessary. The problem for them has not been that the US Administration exaggerated the WMD situation. The main problem for them was Neocons' goal of an irresponsible American Hegemony.
