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| Axis of Evil |
| Bush ups rhetoric against Iraq, says Iraq must be 'liberated' |
| 2003-01-04 |
| Middle East Online President George W. Bush said Friday that the United States is ready to confront Iraq but warned US troops heading for the Gulf that "crucial hours" and "dangers" lay ahead. The Iraqi military isn't as fearsome as Sammy is, but that doesn't mean there's going to be nothing tricky about taking it on — assuming we take it on, of course. Even in a war with next to no casualties, if you're one of the casualties it doesn't seem like a "cakewalk." As the United States stepped up its military force in the Gulf, Bush also threw a new challenge to Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to scrap his weapons of mass destruction and cooperate with the United Nations if he wants to avoid a conflict. "If force becomes necessary to disarm Iraq of weapons of mass destruction and enforce the will of the United Nations, ... America will act deliberately, America will act decisively and America will prevail because we've got the finest military in the world," he told troops at Fort Hood, one of the biggest US military bases. "And Sammy doesn't." "Should Saddam Hussein seal his fate by refusing to disarm, by ignoring the opinion of the world, you'll be fighting not to conquer anybody, but to liberate people," he told troops. |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |
| #6 "crucial hours" - may be a good call, at least for organized resistance. Depending on how things go, there may be snipers in the cities, but I have a sneaking suspicion residents who know about these will be standing on street corners with signs "Sniper This Way! No. 123 Wahb Street, Apt 9!". |
| Posted by: John Anderson 2003-01-05 05:21:25 |
| #5 That Feb 2 date is being bandied about awfully loosly, Steve. I have my doubts as to it's accuracy for that reason. Where's about 3-5 days earlier put us moon-wise? Last quarter, and waning... |
| Posted by: mojo 2003-01-05 02:10:49 |
| #4 JAB, don't worry. It takes time to get all the pieces in place on the board. We've had to get about 60,000 troops in place now with more to come, all their equipment, supplies, support, etc. Takes time. Credit the Bush team for doing it whilst distracting the world with the diplomacy and public statements. The work has been methodical, and real soon now we're going to see Saddam ousted. Fireworks start somewhere around Feb. 2. |
| Posted by: Steve White 2003-01-05 01:20:49 |
| #3 we reach a point of no return...military action becomes inevitable. A diplomatic solution for Iraq would look like US weakness. I think that point has passed. |
| Posted by: john 2003-01-04 19:28:21 |
| #2 He's operating on the assumption that having Sammy beat it without an actual war will be cheaper than going in and killing him. Usually, I agree with Bush. In this case, I don't. The long term costs, both in money and trouble, will outweigh the gains. |
| Posted by: Fred 2003-01-04 14:14:36 |
| #1 Public peeches like this lead me to worry that we've been talking tough all year but have yet to take action. Eventually we're going to have to walk our talk or lose credibility. Is Bush bluffing in hopes that there is a coup or exile deal? |
| Posted by: JAB 2003-01-04 14:09:50 |