Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: BigBull who wrote (37012)	8/11/2002 12:18:04 PM
From: BigBull	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 281500

NYT reports on US pledge to oust Saddam August 11, 2002 Iraqi Opposition Gets U.S. Pledge to Oust Hussein for a Democracy By MICHAEL R. GORDON nytimes.com "The main message was that the U.S. is seriously committed to regime change in Iraqi," Sharif Ali bin al-Hussein, one of the opposition leaders, said, referring to the discussions with Mr. Cheney and Mr. Rumsfeld. "There is no decision on how and when, but the U.S. did stress it wants to maintain the territorial integrity and unity of Iraq and the establishment of the democratic rule of law," he added. "They support a democratic regime in Iraq. They would not support replacing one dictator with another." Such a transformation could pay huge strategic dividends for American foreign policy, but it would also require a substantial effort to rebuild Iraq, including the development of new governing institutions. Mr. Rumsfeld alluded to this vision of a new Iraq on Friday when he told reporters that the United States wanted to see an Iraq that did not develop weapons of mass destruction or threaten its neighbors, and which respected the rule of law and gave its citizens a voice in running the country. Such changes should be sought, he said, despite the criticism that the United States has made a half-hearted effort to build new institutions in Afghanistan after toppling the Taliban. "Wouldn't it be a wonderful thing if Iraq were similar to Afghanistan, if a bad regime was thrown out, people were liberated, food could come in, borders could be opened, repression could stop, prisons could be opened?" Mr. Rumsfeld said. "I mean, it would be fabulous."

To: BigBull who wrote (37012)	8/12/2002 1:31:51 AM
From: D. Long	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

I guess its pretty much confirmed, then. Turkey has seized Iraq airfields. Wow. Derek

To: BigBull who wrote (37012)	8/12/2002 9:47:23 PM
From: Ilaine	Read Replies (5) \| Respond to of 281500

Re: confirmation of Debka -- OK, let's review. We've got confirmation that there are Turkish ground troops in Kurdish northern Iraq, presumably within our no-fly zone, and that they have seized Iraqi territory. We've got confirmation that there are a couple thousand US troops in Jordan, taking part in war games. We've got confirmation that the Russians are engaged in a massive war game exercise in the Caspian sea. We've got confirmation that the US has built a massive base in Qatar. All, very coincidentally, coming out about the same time this weekend. Also, very odd coincidence, the New Scientist publishes a report that we have a new weapon, the E-bomb, which can destroy underground electronic equipment, at the same time that Debka publishes a rather puzzling bit about a new weapon ("new precision-guided bombs capable of locating and destroying fiber optic systems") taking out the Chinese-built Iraqi fiber optic system. What kind of weapon can do that? Probably the E-bomb, wouldn't you say? Not sure about the "locating" but certainly the destroying. So, we've got the Turks on board, the Kurds on board, the Qatari on board, probably the Jordanians on board, and the Russians keeping watch in the Caspian region, and putting "military observers" in Abkhazia, Georgia's breakaway province that is infested with Al Qaeda types. That's the minimum. Could this be an orchestrated effort to tell the world that we do, in fact, have allies in this effort? And, in the meantime, there are popular uprisings in Iran. I'd say Debka is getting it pretty much right this time. The weird thing for me is how my own feelings have morphed during this exercise. The reason I was so fascinated by Walter Russell Mead's essay on Jacksonians is that I felt like I finally understood why I switched from being non-interventionist to bloodthirsty as soon as we were engaged in war or a warlike struggle. It's the innate nature of Americans to become more Jacksonian in times of war.