security and insecurity

> Iraq flouted 12 years of UN resolutions, kicked out inspectors, and
> by its own statements was developing WMD.
>

While the Afgan war was clearly in response to an attack on the US, and
therefor legal by US law (treaties come just under the constitution),
the Iraq invasion was questionable.

Iraq has never attacked the US. Iraq did have some contact with al
Qaeda, but much less than we did (remember that President Reagan funded
the construction of Osama's organization in the '80s). Iraq, regardless
of their intentions, did not have nuclear, chemical, or biological
weapons (much to my surprise). The UN Security Council clearly did not
approve of the US invasion. The inspectors, in the last go-round, did
get Iraq to destroy some missiles and were asking for more time when
the invasion started.

It's nice to get rid of Saddam, but most of the world believes our real
motivation was to control oil. It's a little hard to argue with them
when the first building we secured in Bagdad was the oil ministry.

From my point of view, as an al Qaeda target, I think taking the
pressure of al Qaeda in Afganistan and diverting the best Special Ops
forces to Iraq was a big mistake. Not quite as bad as Bush ignoring al
Qaeda entirely before 9/11, but close and less excusable. If you want
to win, finish off your enemies one at a time. The invasion of Iraq,
at least, could have waited a few years while we polished off al Qaeda.
They had no WMD or we would have found them by now.

If the dinosaurs had a space program, they'd still be here.

Al Globus
CSC at NASA Ames Research Center
www.nas.nasa.gov/~globus/home.html