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: Nadine Carroll who wrote (237793)	7/25/2007 7:26:35 AM
From: Win Smith	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

Yes Nadine. Who needs evidence, when you got another ridiculous analogy to throw out. Moderately less offensive than your usual WWII analogies, though, so I guess that counts as progress. It's not like Duelfer was afraid to reach in the Iraq Survey report. After all, by that account Saddam had the intention of the possibility of the potential of restarting his WMD program, or something. If there was any indication beyond your irrefutable "stylistic analysis" about the "massive huge convoys", I'm sure it would have made it in.

To: Nadine Carroll who wrote (237793)	7/26/2007 1:17:51 AM
From: Maurice Winn	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 281500

Arab culture seems to be like that of a boss I had once. I'm sure that if he told the truth, unvarnished, with no spin or angle, he felt uncomfortable. Language seems to be, for some, such as him and Arabs, [and Chinese I met in Beijing], a force-field which one deploys to manipulate others into circumstances, beliefs and actions to benefit oneself, rather than a way of communicating actual realities or actually intended realities. I wouldn't take Saddam or any others I can think of at their word. I was astounded when his sons-in-law returned to Iraq. It was a short time before what I expected happened. All I could conclude was the sons-in-law had been conned into thinking that they were going to take part in a palace coup. Nevertheless, I have to conclude something. Their words can be used to help decide what's real and what's not and what will happen and won't. I decided that Saddam did not have WMDs and I was right. You could say it's a guess, but I guessed right on what would happen to the sons in law too. And a lot of other stuff. Start at first principles using racist assumptions about human nature and overlay with various facts which are known knowns, do some extrapolation and good conclusions are not so thin on the ground. I also am amused at other truth-tellers such as the USA and its "disbanded" Office of Disinformation. That was hilarious. The funniest lies are those told by people who actually believe them themselves. < 'The first principle is that you must not fool yourself and you're the easiest person to fool.' Richard Feynman via Charlie Munger of Berkshire Hathaway. > I don't think Saddam "buried MIGs in the desert". I saw a picture of one and maybe there were half a dozen. I wonder what the reason was for doing so. Burying aircraft is probably not a great idea for making them operable again. A bit of grit in the engines mightn't be so good and I don't recall that it was even wrapped in dust proof material. Maybe somebody was supposed to have flown it to Iran and didn't and was scared of being executed so buried it to dispose of the evidence, not so that it could be resurrected. A lot of people were scared of execution. I dare say Saddam said whatever he thought was the best bet at the time. So maybe he did tell his generals [some of them anyway] that he had WMDs. But maybe he didn't and that's an Office of Disinformation story. It was funny during the invasion how finding gas masks in Iraqi soldiers was considered evidence of them having gas. It seemed more likely to me that they had them to avoid being gassed by Americans who could send tear gas and whatever among them. The Iraqis certainly didn't have any gas to deploy. I have a gas mask here, for safety in the case of some unknown event. I would keep it close to me if "the authorities" decide to get up to their usual tricks. I also have some methanol which is no doubt a precursor to making WMDs. I have diesel fuel and other stuff too in my shed. I'm sure the Office of Disinformation would claim to have found a major WMD manufacturing plant if they checked it out. "Hey look, he even has a full-face gas mask". QED!! Methanol, for the chemically ignorant, is the precursor for everything! Come to think of it, I have some fertilizer too. I could no doubt rustle up quite a decent bang. Heck, I have even admitted online to having been a member of a Bomb Club. Good Go-, case closed. Off to Guantanamo. Mqurice