No WMD report

[billvon 2,434]

The US and England just delayed the report on WMD's in Iraq essentially indefinitely, per the London Times. To review how we got to this point:
------------------------------------
Simply stated, there is no doubt that Saddam Hussein now has weapons of mass destruction.
Dick Cheney
8/26/02

The president of the United States and the secretary of defense would not assert as plainly and bluntly as they have that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction if it was not true, and if they did not have a solid basis for saying it.
Ari Fleischer
12/6/02

We know for a fact that there are weapons there.
Fleischer
1/9/03

One of our top objectives is to find and destroy the WMD. There are a number of sites.
Pentagon Spokeswoman Victoria Clark
3/22/03

American intelligence report that Iraqi forces "have chemical and biological weapons, and that they have dispersed them, and that they are weaponized, and that, in one case at least, that the command and control arrangements have been established."
Donald Rumsfeld
3/24/03

We know where they are. They are in the area around Tikrit and Baghdad.
Rumsfeld
3/30/03

We'll find them. It'll be a matter of time to do so.
George Bush
5/3/03

For bureaucratic reasons, we settled on one issue, weapons of mass destruction, because it was the one reason everyone could agree on.
Wolfowitz
6/6/03

Britain and America have decided to delay indefinitely the publication of a full report on Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction after inspectors found no evidence that any such weapons exist.
London Times
9/14/03

[lummy 4]

Will you STOP this Bill??? It's ridiculous.. we ALL know that Saddam has WMD, he's just:

A) Hid them really really well
B) Sold Them to Osama
C) Traded them in for Asylum
D) defaulted on the loan and had to give them back to US

I promise not to TP Davis under canopy.. I promise not to TP Davis under canopy.. eat sushi, get smoochieTTK#1

[ThighMan 5]

And just what would you loose if WMD where not found? Money.
Remember the weapons that where found that where not on the list sent to the UN? Oh, forgot about them.
But, hey, have a nice day anyway. When you put something else on the line then you can slam people (President Bush, Powell, and Rumsfeld). But then again, this is America and just say "Thank you".
Patrick

Airborne
Blue Skies, No Wind
Feet and Knees Together

[billvon 2,434]

>Remember the weapons that where found that where not on the list
>sent to the UN? Oh, forgot about them.

Please tell me where these WMD's were found. Haven't heard about them.

>When you put something else on the line then you can slam people
> (President Bush, Powell, and Rumsfeld).

Since when is posting their own quotes slamming them?

>But then again, this is America and just say "Thank you".

And in the end, that's what America is all about. Sit there, shut up and let the king worry about the future.

[TheAnvil 0]

Nice quotes. A few more for the group:

"[W]e urge you, after consulting with Congress, and consistent with the U.S. Constitution and laws, to take necessary actions (including, if appropriate, air and missile strikes on suspect Iraqi sites) to respond effectively to the threat posed by Iraq's refusal to end its weapons of mass destruction programs." -- From a letter signed by Joe Lieberman, Dianne Feinstein, Barbara A. Milulski, Tom Daschle, & John Kerry among others on October 9, 1998

"This December will mark three years since United Nations inspectors last visited Iraq. There is no doubt that since that time, Saddam Hussein has reinvigorated his weapons programs. Reports indicate that biological, chemical and nuclear programs continue apace and may be back to pre-Gulf War status. In addition, Saddam continues to refine delivery systems and is doubtless using the cover of a licit missile program to develop longer- range missiles that will threaten the United States and our allies." -- From a December 6, 2001 letter signed by Bob Graham, Joe Lieberman, Harold Ford, & Tom Lantos among others

"Saddam's goal ... is to achieve the lifting of U.N. sanctions while retaining and enhancing Iraq's weapons of mass destruction programs. We cannot, we must not and we will not let him succeed." -- Madeline Albright, 1998

"Iraq made commitments after the Gulf War to completely dismantle all weapons of mass destruction, and unfortunately, Iraq has not lived up to its agreement." -- Barbara Boxer, November 8, 2002

"The last UN weapons inspectors left Iraq in October of 1998. We are confident that Saddam Hussein retained some stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons, and that he has since embarked on a crash course to build up his chemical and biological warfare capability. Intelligence reports also indicate that he is seeking nuclear weapons, but has not yet achieved nuclear capability." -- Robert Byrd, October 2002

"What is at stake is how to answer the potential threat Iraq represents with the risk of proliferation of WMD. Baghdad's regime did use such weapons in the past. Today, a number of evidences may lead to think that, over the past four years, in the absence of international inspectors, this country has continued armament programs." -- Jacques Chirac, October 16, 2002

"The community of nations may see more and more of the very kind of threat Iraq poses now: a rogue state with weapons of mass destruction, ready to use them or provide them to terrorists. If we fail to respond today, Saddam and all those who would follow in his footsteps will be emboldened tomorrow." -- Bill Clinton in 1998

"In the four years since the inspectors left, intelligence reports show that Saddam Hussein has worked to rebuild his chemical and biological weapons stock, his missile delivery capability, and his nuclear program. He has also given aid, comfort, and sanctuary to terrorists, including Al Qaeda members, though there is apparently no evidence of his involvement in the terrible events of September 11, 2001. It is clear, however, that if left unchecked, Saddam Hussein will continue to increase his capacity to wage biological and chemical warfare, and will keep trying to develop nuclear weapons. Should he succeed in that endeavor, he could alter the political and security landscape of the Middle East, which as we know all too well affects American security." -- Hillary Clinton, October 10, 2002

"I am absolutely convinced that there are weapons...I saw evidence back in 1998 when we would see the inspectors being barred from gaining entry into a warehouse for three hours with trucks rolling up and then moving those trucks out." -- Clinton's Secretary of Defense William Cohen in April of 2003

"Iraq is not the only nation in the world to possess weapons of mass destruction, but it is the only nation with a leader who has used them against his own people." -- Tom Daschle in 1998

"Saddam Hussein's regime represents a grave threat to America and our allies, including our vital ally, Israel. For more than two decades, Saddam Hussein has sought weapons of mass destruction through every available means. We know that he has chemical and biological weapons. He has already used them against his neighbors and his own people, and is trying to build more. We know that he is doing everything he can to build nuclear weapons, and we know that each day he gets closer to achieving that goal." -- John Edwards, Oct 10, 2002

"I share the administration's goals in dealing with Iraq and its weapons of mass destruction." -- Dick Gephardt in September of 2002

"Iraq does pose a serious threat to the stability of the Persian Gulf and we should organize an international coalition to eliminate his access to weapons of mass destruction. Iraq's search for weapons of mass destruction has proven impossible to completely deter and we should assume that it will continue for as long as Saddam is in power." -- Al Gore, 2002

"We are in possession of what I think to be compelling evidence that Saddam Hussein has, and has had for a number of years, a developing capacity for the production and storage of weapons of mass destruction." -- Bob Graham, December 2002

"We have known for many years that Saddam Hussein is seeking and developing weapons of mass destruction." -- Ted Kennedy, September 27, 2002

"I will be voting to give the president of the United States the authority to use force - if necessary - to disarm Saddam Hussein because I believe that a deadly arsenal of weapons of mass destruction in his hands is a real and grave threat to our security." -- John F. Kerry, Oct 2002

"We begin with the common belief that Saddam Hussein is a tyrant and a threat to the peace and stability of the region. He has ignored the mandates of the United Nations and is building weapons of mass destruction and the means of delivering them." -- Carl Levin, Sept 19, 2002

"Over the years, Iraq has worked to develop nuclear, chemical and biological weapons. During 1991 - 1994, despite Iraq's denials, U.N. inspectors discovered and dismantled a large network of nuclear facilities that Iraq was using to develop nuclear weapons. Various reports indicate that Iraq is still actively pursuing nuclear weapons capability. There is no reason to think otherwise. Beyond nuclear weapons, Iraq has actively pursued biological and chemical weapons.U.N. inspectors have said that Iraq's claims about biological weapons is neither credible nor verifiable. In 1986, Iraq used chemical weapons against Iran, and later, against its own Kurdish population. While weapons inspections have been successful in the past, there have been no inspections since the end of 1998. There can be no doubt that Iraq has continued to pursue its goal of obtaining weapons of mass destruction." -- Patty Murray, October 9, 2002

"As a member of the House Intelligence Committee, I am keenly aware that the proliferation of chemical and biological weapons is an issue of grave importance to all nations. Saddam Hussein has been engaged in the development of weapons of mass destruction technology which is a threat to countries in the region and he has made a mockery of the weapons inspection process." -- Nancy Pelosi, December 16, 1998

"Even today, Iraq is not nearly disarmed. Based on highly credible intelligence, UNSCOM [the U.N. weapons inspectors] suspects that Iraq still has biological agents like anthrax, botulinum toxin, and clostridium perfringens in sufficient quantity to fill several dozen bombs and ballistic missile warheads, as well as the means to continue manufacturing these deadly agents. Iraq probably retains several tons of the highly toxic VX substance, as well as sarin nerve gas and mustard gas. This agent is stored in artillery shells, bombs, and ballistic missile warheads. And Iraq retains significant dual-use industrial infrastructure that can be used to rapidly reconstitute large-scale chemical weapons production." -- Ex-Un Weapons Inspector Scott Ritter in 1998

"There is unmistakable evidence that Saddam Hussein is working aggressively to develop nuclear weapons and will likely have nuclear weapons within the next five years. And that may happen sooner if he can obtain access to enriched uranium from foreign sources -- something that is not that difficult in the current world. We also should remember we have always underestimated the progress Saddam has made in development of weapons of mass destruction." -- John Rockefeller, Oct 10, 2002

"Saddam’s existing biological and chemical weapons capabilities pose a very real threat to America, now. Saddam has used chemical weapons before, both against Iraq’s enemies and against his own people. He is working to develop delivery systems like missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles that could bring these deadly weapons against U.S. forces and U.S. facilities in the Middle East." -- John Rockefeller, Oct 10, 2002

"Whether one agrees or disagrees with the Administration’s policy towards Iraq, I don’t think there can be any question about Saddam’s conduct. He has systematically violated, over the course of the past 11 years, every significant UN resolution that has demanded that he disarm and destroy his chemical and biological weapons, and any nuclear capacity. This he has refused to do. He lies and cheats; he snubs the mandate and authority of international weapons inspectors; and he games the system to keep buying time against enforcement of the just and legitimate demands of the United Nations, the Security Council, the United States and our allies. Those are simply the facts." -- Henry Waxman, Oct 10, 2002

I'll think I'll leave it at that. There are more....

Vinny the Anvil
Post Traumatic Didn't Make The Lakers Syndrome is REAL
JACKASS POWER!!!!!!

[ScubaSteve 0]

I think the following entries should also be included in the timeline. Just to add context.

http://www.nationalreview.com/levin/levin.asp

In order to find the truth we need to look futrther into history. Maybe our government is not lying about Iraq's capabilities. Just a posibility worth further examination.

[firediver 0]

Just for laughs....

I'll hide 2,222,000 simulated fatal doses of weaponized anthrax in a baseball stadium and bet you that you can't find it in a year. Now I'll hide 1000 times that in an area the size of California and see if anyone can find it in ten years. I bet I'll win. I don't know if there are WMD weapons in iraq or not, but I know I don't want to risk finding out the wrong way.

By the way, 2,222,000 doses is the same amount as a packet of artificial sweetener, 1 gram.

Skydiving isn't scary;...but clowns...CLOWNS are scary!

[dterrick 0]

Quote

Will you STOP this Bill??? It's ridiculous.. we ALL know that Saddam has WMD, he's just:

A) Hid them really really well
B) Sold Them to Osama
C) Traded them in for Asylum
D) defaulted on the loan and had to give them back to US

E. All of the above
F. None of the above
G. A, B on alternate Sundays, and C if it's Groundhog Day
H. Not D, They were a gift but he gave them back anyway
I. Uh, define WMD for us again will ya... We forgot if Tequila was included

I know Billvon wouldn't kid us about this and that scares me.

My money is on #B. Of course, since this same adminsitration deems that even Canadians will soon need bodimetric-based passports to enter the USA, I'm sure you'll all be safe ...

-Dave

Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

[billvon 2,434]

>I don't know if there are WMD weapons in iraq or not, but I know I
>don't want to risk finding out the wrong way.

Funny that the Iraqis seemed quite incompetent about _using_ their vast stores of WMD's against us, but are experts at hiding them while we were bombing them. They were so clueless they never even opened the UN seals on a vault that contained uranium ore, but they had a secret nuclear weapon facility hidden so well we will never find it. They had hundreds of scientists supposedly manufacturing chemical weapons, nuclear bombs and bioweapons, but none of the scientists we found knew anything about where they were hidden.

Incredibly clever and unbeleivably stupid, those Iraqis. I suppose it even makes sense to someone.

[indyz 1]

Quote

Now I'll hide 1000 times that in an area the size of California and see if anyone can find it in ten years. I bet I'll win.

Please also hide the simulated laboratories, the simulated detritus of a military bureaucracy (memos, emails, etc.), and a couple hundred simulated scientists who have nothing to lose by spilling their guts.

The weapons themselves could be made hard to find, but the infrastructure required to make them is a bit more difficult to sweep under the rug.

Quote

I don't know if there are WMD weapons in iraq or not, but I know I don't want to risk finding out the wrong way.

I don't know if there are WMDs in Sweden (they claim that there aren't any), but does that mean that the Swedes deserve an invasion?

[wmw999 2,149]

If the program was big enough to be a really serious threat, I think there would have been a number of disaffected scientists or technicians who would have come forward in the months since the US took power.

If there were only people working for it who were both loyal and secretive, then it probably wasn't very big, because there just aren't that many people who, in such a radically changed situation, wouldn't tell about something like that. For approval or money.

It's kind of like the folks who say the moon landings never happened. Do you really think that several thousand NASA employees could keep that good a secret? Not that they all would have direct evidence, but things wouldn't add up for a lot of people.

Wendy W.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[Michele 1]

I dunno...I kinda go with the thought that some seriously deadly stuff can be manufactured and dispersed really simply, without thousands of folks knowing about it. If the point is to promulgate terror, one needs just enough to kill a bunch of folks.

Seems reasonable to me that it could be done way under cover...

Ciels-
Michele

~Do Angels keep the dreams we seek
While our hearts lie bleeding?~

[firediver 0]

well, we agree that we disagree.

Blue ones...

Skydiving isn't scary;...but clowns...CLOWNS are scary!

[ThighMan 5]

Quote

>Remember the weapons that where found that where not on the list
>sent to the UN? Oh, forgot about them.

Please tell me where these WMD's were found. Haven't heard about them.

>When you put something else on the line then you can slam people
> (President Bush, Powell, and Rumsfeld).

Since when is posting their own quotes slamming them?

>But then again, this is America and just say "Thank you".

And in the end, that's what America is all about. Sit there, shut up and let the king worry about the future.

Hey Bill, if you are the "King" Bugger Off. You can sit back in the U.S.A. and complain all you want. Put something in the effort instead of just "Quoting" the leaders. It is people like you who just love to complain and bitch because it is not going "Their" own way. Well, guess what, life is tough and it must go on. If not, please end it for us and stop the bitching.
Patrick

Airborne
Blue Skies, No Wind
Feet and Knees Together

[ranchhand28 0]

I believe that raising dubious points regarding all this controversy surrounding the Weapons of Mass Distruction is just a mere exercise of our freedom of speech. And not bitching, which sounds downright crude and empty of arguments.

Thinking about what's easy and what's not, let's also imagine that it must not be easy to have your homeland taken over by foreign troops that don't understand the culture, the language, the bare minimum... Think how humiliating that must be... Now think about how easy it is just to sit in the U.S. applauding the administration's war campaign, and not even be phased by the fact that the main reasons for the war is yet to be discovered or stumbled upon...

Sovereignty is one, if not the biggest, principles that orients freedom, democracy, the world as we know it. And Iraq does NOT enjoy such privilege under the allegation that the country/its former leader/whoever might have supported terrorist causes and might have had a WMD program (despite what every other expert had to say...).

In the words of Sergio Vieira de Mello, my fellow countryman that died in the bombing of the UN Headquarters in Iraq, I'd be pretty upset if tanks invaded Bahia de Guanabara or Copacabana in Rio de Janeiro. It is humiliating and distressing.

For all those reason, it would be nice to see some of the allegations materialize into hard evidence... Not for the sake of argument, but the sake of millions of Iraqis that deserve their country back.

my 2 cents.

T

Edited to correct typos (trigger happy, trigger happy!)

[Harksaw 0]

What I want to know is, if Saddam Hussein ever was a threat to us with these weapons, why didn't he use them when his regieme was being destroyed?

__________________________________________________
I started skydiving for the money and the chicks. Oh, wait.

[freeflydrew 0]

I'm not surprised that there's NO evidence of Weapon's of Mass Destruction, no connection, no justification, no prewar plan, no postwar plan, no honesty, no etc, etc, etc...
No Connection between Anthrax in the mail and Iraq!!!

People who support whats going on in Iraq just say these things about liberal this, or tough luck that, but fail to address the original issue...
I have yet to hear a single positive thing about this entire campaign in Iraq, and most of this administrations decisions over the past three years...

http://www.misleader.org

Remember to open your ears when you're "watching" the news...

[ChasingBlueSky 0]

Yea Bill, we should just believe everything the White House says - how dare you think for yourself and hold those in power to what they tell us! How dare you use that freedom of speech.

I mean, it was the White House that told us that the air in NYC was 100% safe after the 9/11 attack, and the EPA even agreed. Oh .....wait .....that's right, two independent studies recently showed that the air was no where near safe for 9 weeks after the attack.....when the EPA was asked about this they OFFICIALLY let the public know it was the White House that told them they were not allowed to talk about anything negative in the air in NY. Hmmm...but I'm sure the GWB administration had our best interests in mind when they forced the EPA to lie as thousands of people went about their lives thinking it was safe to breath in the air.

So yea....I should believe Bush that Iraq was connected to OBL and that he had WMD. I mean, he wouldn't lie to us.....politicians never lie, esp the American ones....

_________________________________________
you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me....
I WILL fly again.....

[nightjumps 1]

I think there has been a serious miscommunication about this whole issue.

No one ever said anything about "Weapons of Mass Destruction."

What they said was, "Weapons of Mass Distraction."

Ya know, its kinda like when Ivan's talking about "Boobies" and someone mistakes it for Bombies." I hope that clears things up for everyone.

[rhino 0]

Quote

What I want to know is, if Saddam Hussein ever was a threat to us with these weapons, why didn't he use them when his regieme was being destroyed?

Why? Because our troops were too fast.. And Sadhams troops knew it meant certain death..

[wmw999 2,149]

Quote

kinda like when Ivan's talking about "Boobies" and someone mistakes it for Bombies

I'm glad you set us straight on that!

Wendy W.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[nightjumps 1]

[jraf 0]

A guy I knew and a ver good buddy of my brother was too fast. Rafael Naveda was too fast in Iraq and drove on to a trap land mine a couple of weeks ago.

He was so fast that he left a wife and three small children behind. He re enlisted because he could not find employment in our fabulous economy.

Our troops have not found the WMDs but lots of them found their death. For fucking what I ask? Why do I have to go to benefits for friends who have fallen in the name of some politicians sick ambition?

jraf

Me Jungleman! Me have large Babalui.
Muff #3275

[Gawain 0]

Quote

It's kind of like the folks who say the moon landings never happened. Do you really think that several thousand NASA employees could keep that good a secret? Not that they all would have direct evidence, but things wouldn't add up for a lot of people.

Moon landings aside, how many people were involved in the Manhattan Project?

How many people were involved in the planning of Operation Overlord?

How many people do we know or think work at Area 51, and how many poeple know what's going on, and how many people outside of that really know?

Secrecy doesn't necessarily lie in ensuring that everyone keeps a secret. It may involve enough activity to mask out the "really good stuff" and providing plausible deniability.

So I try and I scream and I beg and I sigh
Just to prove I'm alive, and it's alright
'Cause tonight there's a way I'll make light of my treacherous life
Make light!

[sducoach 0]

Don't listen to Bigun!!!!

He's figured you out!

WMW999 = weapon of mass womanhood 666 upside down!!!!

Busted!

Blues,

J.E.

James 4:8