Scott Ritter on Foxnews

“You're right about the UN already being weak because of it's weakest link, US!...look at us, we can't even pay for our share but have to have a private citizen do it for us. Just goes to show the world how much respect we have for the international community and international law. Put the shoe on the other foot and we wouldn't be allowing UN inspectors in either. In a world of thugs like Saddam, I guess it takes one to know one.”

“totally... Fox News is the biggest Republican spin factory out there... I feel like I'm watching pro wrestling, it might be kinda entertaining but never take it seriously

donman
12:15:48 PM
09/13/02


They key to appreciating Fox News is Roger Ailes. Ailes is chairman and president of Fox news. He is an intense partisan. He was a Bush campaign aide - and was responsible for the Willie Horton ad. He was once the executive producer of the Rush Limbaugh show. He put Bush's cousin in charge of the Florida election coverage in 2000. And people grouse about biased liberal media!


pedxing
12:57:37 PM
09/13/02



and the same could be said of all other networks for the democratic side. i haven't watched fox news, so i don't have an opinion of them. i do find myself disgusted with many of the other networks quite often though. their liberal bias sickens me at times.”

“Is it time for me to plug C-SPAN again?

<GRIN>”

“There is no way the UN will ever be strong...America needs to take care of Americans..American soldiers need to serve under US military leaders...We built this country into the world economic/military power..why should we give one inch to the rest of the world...they are every bit as self serving as we are..which is the way it should be...”

“Davies, all that is well and good. My point stands: Where is the evidence? What possible reason do we have for endangering US soldiers in Iraq, other than speculation and doubt?

If you want to list Iraq's refusal to comply with UN resolutions, then you can't argue that the UN has no place in US decision making in the same breath.”

“make love, not war.”

“phaedrus, were you on the debate team in school?”

“Having a strong institution like the UN is in the best interests of everyone including us. If you don't mind nations being self serving then you can't really have a problem with Iraq.”

“No, Baume. I'm not a trial lawyer either. I'm just a guy trying to figure out his opinions on things. I have an idea about them, and am looking for compelling arguments to help me refine them.

If someone could really show me why we should invade Iraq, I would support the president on it.

Since there has been no evidence to support such theories as "saddam is linked to al-qaeda" or "saddam is developing nuclear weaponry", I am on the side of working with the UN to facilitate inspections to find such evidence if it exists.”

“are you kleetn?”

“I'm not sure today. Ask Bacpac. He knows everything.”

“I don't see us attacking Pakistan for having nukes and supporting the Taliban or Islamic fundamentalist terrorists.”

“i think you are right phaed. the president should keep you advised of all the intel there is on this matter, because after all, it's important that you agree with all of his decisions. perhaps a direct hotline connecting you to rumsfeld's office would satisfy you?


of course i'm being silly to point out the possibility(once again) that there is more to the picture than meets the eye. we (or scott ritter) may not be privey to all the evidence. is that a possibility in your mind? is it possible that there is intel that would be unwise to make public? you will , i no doupt, ignore this logic just resort to saying the same thing over and over.”

“And if a Democratic administration just said "Trust Us," would you be singing the same tune?

Nope!

And neither would I.”

“Strat, why would they not allow the UN security council to see this "evidence"?”

“That is to say, I would demand better arguments No Matter Who was in office.”

“but i believe that's what he did the other day at the UN. he laid it out & they realized that if they want to be considered letigimate, they had better adress all the resolutions violations iraq has comitted. their is no other reson needed, he has already violated the resolutions. enforcement is the next logical step. maybe if we ask saddam really sweet like, he'll comply...”

“I know someone might say "national security" when asked why they don't produce evidence before we go to war, but what is to keep someone from saying the same thing when there is really no evidence whatsoever?

Nothing except citizens like us, asking the right questions in the face of an administration that treats questions as espionage.”

“Absolutely, strat. If the UN security council sees evidence that predicates a multilateral military operation, then it has to be done.

I suspect, however, that they will demand Iraq allow weapons inspectors back in, rather than attack them.”

“what about the security resolutions violations that already taken place on the part of oraq?”

“i mean iraq....oraq is in the south pacific...”

“What about them? Do you mean how do we, as Americans, go about punishing Iraq for this? What?

Saddam can't live forever. Let the UN have some teeth and see that he is a politcal and military cripple the rest of his days.”

“phaeddy phaeddy quite contrary....



ok, he has violated the resolutions set forth by your beloved UN. what in the he11 are they gonna do about it? nothing? geesh phaed, i know you understand what i'm saying here.”

“Okay, strat, I'm answering you in the same tone from now on:

Straddy, you poor brainwashed, new conservative, can't you see that it's not for us to enforce the UN's resolutions without the UN's approval? There's no reason to, don't you see that? Are you not understanding? I know you're in there, c'mon, man think!”

“When I say self serving I'm speaking in regard to representative Govts..That group of elected leaders should always act in the best interest of its citizenry..If these nations have certain principles or needs in common then by all means work together...When you start talking about dictators..Thats a situation where an individual is acting in his own interest...at times at the expense of his citizens and neighbors..ie. Kuwait and Iran...This is a situation where nations in the best interest of their citizens need to make tough decisions in order to insure future peace and saftey...the tough part about it is that it comes at a cost..a bloody cost..yet it's better to spill drops now..then gallons later...I think the success of our military operations in Afganistan(we over threw a govt. with a couple hundred special forces and air power) should give you people some confidence that the president does everything in his power to keep American soldiers safe and allows them to fight their own battles...Compare this with Somolia..where a very small conflict cost us more lives than a war(Thsi was thanks to UN control of US troops that and the former Pres. not giving the military the tactical advantage of using c-130's...I think Bush no more wants to be at war than any other normal person..I think he just happens to be in a position that gives him a bit of a vantage point in viewing the whole situation...”

“what should be done by the UN to enforce the violations?”

“what should be done by the UN to enforce the violations?”

“what should be done by the UN to enforce the violations?”

“what should be done by the UN to enforce the violations?”

“what should be done by the UN to enforce the violations?”

“what should be done by the UN to enforce the violations?”

“That'll be completely up to the UN, not Bush.”

“"enforce the violations"...

Okay, strat, you're asking me if I think the UN should punish Iraq for past violations?

Not at the expense of American soldiers. Not if that's the only motive. If there's real reason to believe Iraq may be a threat, then I would support military action.”

“"you people..."

Hmm. Where have I heard That one? LOL


There have been instances of dictators who were more benevalent, but without self-determination, the inhabitants were more akin to pets than citizens.

I thought at least one major problem in Somalia was the lack of mobile armor (as Les Aspin later admitted) not so much C-130s... ? Are you referring to C-130s employed as orbiting weapons platforms similar to the Vietnam era's "Puff the Magic Dragon"?


(I think Stratdewd's record is scratched)”

“

"Spookey"”

“THE PRESIDENT'S 2001 ADDRESS TO THE NATION FOLLOWING 9-11:


"Tonight
we are a country awakened to danger and called to defend freedom.
Our grief has turned to anger, and anger to resolution. Whether we
bring our enemies to justice, or bring justice to our enemies,
justice will be done. ... [Afghanistan will] deliver to United
States authorities all the leaders of al-Qa'ida who hide in your
land. ... Close immediately and permanently every terrorist
training camp in Afghanistan and hand over every terrorist,
and every person in their support structure, to appropriate
authorities. Give the United States full access to terrorist
training camps, so we can make sure they are no longer operating.
These demands are not open to negotiation or discussion.
The Taliban must act and act immediately. They will hand over the
terrorists, or they will share in their fate. ... Our enemy is a
radical network of terrorists, and every government that supports
them. Our war on terror begins with al-Qaida, but it does not
end there. It will not end until every terrorist group of global
reach has been found, stopped, and defeated. ... By sacrificing
human life to serve their radical visions -- by abandoning every
value except the will to power -- they follow in the path of
fascism, and Nazism, and totalitarianism. And they will follow
that path all the way, to where it ends: in history's unmarked
grave of discarded lies. ... From this day forward, any nation
that continues to harbor or support terrorism will be regarded by
the United States as a hostile regime. ... As long as the United
States of America is determined and strong, this will not be an
age of terror; this will be an age of liberty, here and across
the world. ... I will not forget this wound to our country, or
those who inflicted it. I will not yield -- I will not rest --
I will not relent in waging this struggle for the freedom and
security of the American people. The course of this conflict
is not known, yet its outcome is certain. Freedom and fear,
justice and cruelty, have always been at war, and we know that
God is not neutral between them."


--President George W. Bush,
Address to the Nation, September 20, 2001”

“What's the point of posting that, Strat? Do you have some insight that you'd care to share?”

“you have a booger on your forhead and your pants don't match that shirt......”

“As expected, when he can't come up with an intelligent answer, he resorts to childish insults.”

“gear slut has no scence of humor...




you mother was a hamster and your father smelled of elderberries...”

“I'd say Bush's speech illuminates pretty clearly that Bush set a course of action..and has been following that course of action..pretty successfully I might add..It's been a year and in that time no new terrorist atacks have happened..we defeated the taliban and scattered al queda to the four winds...and now where following up with those countries that support terrorism...

Man those c-130s are cool..especially those Daisy Cutters that they drop out of those bad boys..one of those would have ended the fighting in Somalia..and wouldn't have cost one US life...makes one wonder..What the hell was Clinton thinking...”

“Wsd, I might agree with you if there were any evidence that Iraq was supporting terrorism.

There is plenty of evidence that Saudi Arabia is supporting terrorism, on the other hand. We aren't clamoring to invade Saudi Arabia, though... Hmmm...”

“re: Somalia

Yes, WS, slaughtering human beings is really "cool". The Previous Bush sent in the Army (without so much as a Bradley), or don't you recall? In the Psych Biz I believe they refer to that phenonmenon as Selective Forgetting. Cheney was at Defense and Powell was head of the Joint Chiefs, right?


re: support of terror

Again, simply repeating that Hussein has ties to terrorists over and over will not magically make it so, except in Your mind, perhaps.

Who's next on the Hit Parade after Iraq? North Korea? Iran? China? You don't hear much about North Korea these days. The Subsequent Bush included Iran on his Laundry List of Evil but it is more democratic today than Saudi Arabia has ever been. More moderates are elected in every cycle.”

“britan is getting ready to release a report on how sadam is tied to terrorism.”

“Cool. Let's hear it.”

“Yep, that could change the whole course of the debate.”

“stratdewd, where did you get your speech? There's an awful lot of ellipses (that would be the dots: ...) in there. That means things are missing from what you quoted. I guess it's a quote. As with everything on here, please cite your source.

AND statdewd, it's hard to take you seriously when you spell like total SHI!T. I guess the English teacher of your past WAS RIGHT. You can make a lot better presentation when YOU CAN SPELL.

My $.02”

“And I thought *I* was grouchy today, <sheesh>, LOL


It's kindof a pain having to manually check the spelling of a word sometimes, but then I think of how much less COLORFUL this board would be if it had auto-spelchek, <har-har>...”

“since logic only makes sence if it's spelled right....



it is a known fact (reported in the media)that mohomad atta(don't ask me to spell that correctly) met with iraqi gubment officials only a couple months before the 9-11 attacks. look it up, it's there. i assumed all this time that you all knew that. i think it was in germany but wouldnt swear to that part.

re;the bush speech

that was like a major public speech and is also very easily obtained for those who care to know the truth. the dates are given, it was on all the networks live. i and most people i know watched it live. it's really what he said, i have no interest in deception.



phaed i strongly agree with you about the saudi government. they have slapped us in the face and because we need the oil, we put up with it. huge double standard. not a bush/big oil thing. it's a usa needs the oil thing. i say let's reduce our consumption and drill our own, enough so that we dont need them anymore. we get 7% or our oil from saudi arabia.


tilt, i read in todays paper about N & S Korea negotiating tearing down the border. seems impossible to me but thats what they are reporting.”

“Minor correction:

The Atta/Iraq connection is a disputed allegation, not a known fact.

It depends on who you believe. The Washington Post & Newsweek or The Prague Post.”