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Why do you hate anti-war protestors? And why are you offended by the efforts of France, Germany, and Russia to block the actions of the US which may lead to war against Iraq? Who is the real culprit here? Let's see: What country has been, and remains, the main source of money for Islamic terrorists? Saudi Arabia. What citizenship was held by the majority of Islamic Terrorists? Saudi Arabia. Where was Osama bin Laden born? Saudi Arabia. Where are the business interests of Osama bin Laden, businesses which nourish him financially? Saudi Arabia. Which country only one week ago made a direct threat of war to the US? Not Iraq, but North Korea. North Korea represents a much bigger threat than Iraq, but all of your naval ships are now in the Red Sea, not in the Yellow Sea. Why are you picking only on Iraq? Why can't Americans and George W. Bush think about the consequences (to the Iraqi people) of this escalation? Will a war against Iraq be fruitful in any way? Will a coup de grace against Sadam Hussein magically reduce the threat of terrorism to nil? (Even if we remove Sadam Hussein from power, we will still face about the same level of terrorist threat from other sources, so why pursue him?)

Although the Bush administration does not talk about it at length, if at all, the dividends of taking out the Saddam regime in Iraq will be:
1) The significant likelihood that the Iranian people will unseat their Mullahs (it is generally conceded that Iran is the home office of Islamic terrorism).
2) The Saudis, and with them the lesser Arab rulers, will be cowed. They will now know definitively, that the US will back it's threats with action. They will understand that they must either cease supporting Islamic terrorism or face Saddam's fate.
3) In short, the US will be feared in the region.
If all of the above smacks of ugly power politics, so be it. The alternative is a gauranteed repeat of 9/11.

Why can't Americans and George W. Bush think about the consequences (to the Iraqi people) of this escalation?

During the past 2 decades, Mr. Hussein has systematically targeted certain minority groups in Iraq, particularly the Iraqi Kurds. During the 80's between 120,000 and 180,000 Kurds were killed and more then 4,000 villages destroyed during the Anfal campaign. Perhaps more famously, in 1998 Saddam used chemical weapons in about 60 villages, including Halabja where he killed more then 5,000 children and parents and injured over 10,000 in a single 6 hour period. Consider the following survivors story:

The case of Halabja is full of the same emotive human tremors that emerge when survivors speak of the destruction of Koreme village. Tears flow when Younis Sharif Mohamed tells of hiding in his basement with 13 other members of his family. The regular shelling lasted for several hours. "Then something new happened," Mr. Mohamed says. "The sound of the bombs was different ? a flat, damp-sounding pop ... pop. We noticed a darkening of the sun, and then three special smells like apple, onion, and cucumber. After a moment, people began to scream." Mohamed was out of the basement first, with his mother close behind. But he soon collapsed. When he came to, his eyes were in extreme pain. Ten other family members lay dead where they fell.

For all the faults and failures that some US Foreign Policy has had in the past, it has also been a champion of freedom and assistance to many who are repressed. Witness the United States war involvement during the 1990's to help the muslin population in Bosnia/Serbia. Countless lives where saved from Milosevic (currently on trial for crimes against humanity).

Likewise, the northern and southern no-fly zones in Iraq (as a result of the 1991 war) have saved countless of Kurds (in the north) and Shi'te Muslins (in the south). The US has been a protector to Muslin's for many years. This war is not against muslims, but rather about liberating and providing protection to those people. South Korea has had the benefit of US protection for more then half a century from a pretty crazy northern neighbor. On March 1, 2003 South Korea held a MASSIVE rally in support of the US and it's continued presence in South Korea. If the US doesn't help these people who will?

I have an Iraqi friend who was saddened by all the anti war protests. He was afraid that it would deny his country the first real opportunity to freedom in almost 30 years.