Pro-war camp can't make the case that an attack is in nationa interest

The Orange County Register ^ | Feb. 2, 2003 | Ted Galen Carpenter

[Samurai_Jack]

U.S. troops are not armed crusaders with a mission to right all wrongs and liberate oppressed populations.

Here's another problem...

War on terrorism... Saddam Hussein harbors Al Queda Terrorists and Trained them at Salman Pak. In addition there are other reports of ties from Iraqi Agents to the first WTC Bombing in 93, and the OKC Bombing. See OKCBombing.org for more information.

The U.S. MUST be allowed to carry out conflicts that are in the interest of our national defense.

[Samurai_Jack]

Overthrowing Saddam would weaken the terrorist threat and intimidate other regimes that might be tempted to cooperate with terrorists.

I never heard anyone proposing this seriously. I detect a strawman here.

[Samurai_Jack]

Saddam and the other members of the Iraqi political elite know that threatening, much less attacking

We dont have to worry about it if Saddam is 'THREATENING'. The whole problem is that we KNOW he is in pursuit of Nukes and he is NOT Threatening. Everyone knows that the Threat of Nukes is deterrable, its what you DONT know that will get you.

Saddam is not going to threaten, Saddam is going to hand off his finished product to an Al Queda Operative and detonate it in the port of baltimore.

Im certain that it will be traced over to Yemen where the fingerprints all disappear convieniently.

[finnman69]

Nor is it likely that Iraq would pass along chemical or biological weapons to al-Qaida/Saddam and the other members of the Iraqi political elite know that threatening, much less attacking, the United States would be an act of suicide. Young, useful idiots like the Sept. 11 terrorists may be suicidal, but rulers of countries almost never are. Iraq's rulers know that attacking the United States would lead to an annihilating counterstroke from the world's largest nuclear arsenal.

Nor is it likely that Iraq would risk its destruction by attempting to assasinate the President of the United St...oooppsss. They DID do that. Likely is not good enough any more after 9/11. Plus we know for a fact Saddam funds terrorism in Israel. Other arab nations also fund terrorists also, but Saddam is the spookiest and has been the most unpredictable.

It would serve as a recruiting poster for Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida. However much Americans might believe that an attack on Iraq is justified, it would be perceived throughout the Islamic world as aggressive U.S. imperialism.

We heard this prior to invading Afghanistan to remove the most Islamist and extreme of any arab regime on the planet, the Taliban. Where is the condemnation and arab rage on the streets? Hhhmmm... No self respecting Arab is going to miss the very secular Saddam Hussein or his cronies. Saddam's own people want him gone and they WILL be dancing in the streets just like the happy young girls in Afghanistan who now can attend schools without fear of execution.

Read this for interviews with real Iraqis who want Saddam gone

When the Enemy Is a Liberator (Iraqis want Saddam gone, but are wary of US)

[Samurai_Jack]

Very disappointing. I expect a higher quality article from the Cato Institute.