I wasn't going to comment on this thread...just read through the 1,000+ replies...but all this crap about the US needing 'approval' from the UN Security Council is beginning to annoy me. SYRIA is heading the UN Secutiry Council now! SYRIA!
SCREW the Security Council! Screw the UN!
The more a country makes use of multilateral institutions thereby respecting shared values, and accepting the obligations and restraints inherent in those values, the more others will trust and respect it and the stronger its chance to exercise true leadership. -Kofi Annan
Sure, but Mr. Annan, the chances are already about as strong as can be imagined. There is something honorable about leading by doing. Of course, it depends on whether the act is for good or for evil. Leading by talking is for a debating society.
We don't understand the dynamic here on FR, but it is real -our less informed neighbors and fellow citizens just wanted to see Bush addressing the U.N. in a spirit of fellowship and cooperation. They wanted that base covered before we embark on military endeavors. Is it useless? We know it is! But, the folks out there - good willed Americans watching "American Idol" and lost in their Fantasy Football rosters - still think the U.N. is some moral beacon that should be involved. We're not going to need ANYTHING from the U.N. to execute this mission. Nobody is going to pay attention to the nuances of foreign support after seeing that video of Bush standing up before the World body today. That's what they needed to see. If the American people sign off, the gutless twerps in D.C. will jump on board. When America shows its resolve and success, the twerps in Europe will rush the bandwagon. Bush is playing the game. Tony Blair sees the winner, and is setting himself and the Brits up as the most influential player in the new Europe. Putin is on board, even though he can't openly support the Iraq campaign because of Russian industrial interests there.
Saddam and his regime of brutality are toast. When Saddam is gone, Iran will burn from within. Millions of Iranians have been demonstrating in the streets against the Tehran despots for months. When Iran and Iraq are cooked, the operational tools, financing and protections that only a Nation-State can supply to a worldwide terrorist movement will disappear. Syria, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Pakistan will eradicate their terrorist ties and remove destructive individuals. Hezbollah and Hamas will be fiscally defanged. Arafat will hang. We won't need the Saudis for oil anymore. The Chinese will understand that Bush is not to be challenged regarding sacred commitments to Taiwan. Iraq is the catylist for all of this.
Okay...the million dollar question: What does everyone think the time frame will be for military action? Weeks? Months?