About Those Iraq Contracts: Help Our Allies, or the French? You Decide.

Wall Street Journal ^ | 12/12/03

[bdeaner]

Help our allies, or the French? You decide.

Friday, December 12, 2003 12:01 a.m.

OK, it was probably bad timing. Just at the moment the U.S. is going to ask Germany, France and Russia to forgive a big chunk of Iraqi debt, the U.S. put its finger in their collective eye.

[bdeaner]

Paybacks are a bitch.

[Coroner]

I think as far as the new Iraqi govt. is concerned, they can try to get their money back from Saddam!!

[farmfriend]

bttt

[Cindy]

Now class, we are going to study today this story, THE LITTLE RED HEN. There's a lesson here for sure. Will France and friends get it?

http://www.hubbardscupboard.org/the_little_red_hen.html

[happydogdesign]

[hosepipe]

Boycott french hens.....

[sarasmom]

"OK, it was probably bad timing. Just at the moment the U.S. is going to ask Germany, France and Russia to forgive a big chunk of Iraqi debt, the U.S. put its finger in their collective eye."

Actually, I thought the timing was rather brilliant!
Hopefully the next move is a "cant be ignored" release of the analysis on the document bonanza found in Iraq....

[Imal]

I think my initial reaction still sums up my opinion best:

"Must be present to win."

[expatpat]

Yes, I agree -- the timing was good. Make the baseturds do some real heavy forgiving if they want even a small share.

[Burkeman1]

Get what? 450 Americans are dead. 0 Frenchmen are dead. I am sure the French, Germans, and Russians don't care about such contracts since it won't be their citizens money that is spent. The "contracts" in Iraq will be paid for by you and me!

What a victory! Whoopee! Hurray! We showed them "coward" Frenchmen didn't we! Sad.

[Intolerant in NJ]

...THE LITTLE RED HEN...the story I made sure I read to my young daughter many times - the last few lines I recall to this day - "Oh no," said the little red hen. "You did not help me plant the seed, you did not help me raise the wheat, you did not help me harvest the grain, you did not help me grind the wheat, you did not help me bake the bread, and you will not help me eat the bread - I will eat it myself." And she did - it was delicious....

[TheSpottedOwl]

Fork France! I just love it :-)

[Cindy]

re post no. 11 --- By golly you got it! That's how the story goes.

[DarthMaulrulesok]

I say help our allies (England, Austrailia, Poland, Spain, Italy and the rest of the coalition). The heck with the French. Nuts to them and their wine and cheese!

[Spacemonkey1023]

What about the argument that it isn't the gov'ts benefitting, but private contracting companies? Don't get me wrong, I agree with you all. Screw them. Still, some of my lib friends used that little rationale. I kinda figured that the money would still trickle to or through the gov't somehow, but I couldn't think of anything specific, and these guys have really got it in for us right now.

[bdeaner]

Private companies pay taxes. That's how the government benefits.

[endthematrix]

French private corporations sold arms to Saddam. We can differentiate between gov't and business. It is hard when they float back and forth and all. But you (or your lib friends)won't win hearts by separating the Frog government from private contracting companies...the ones who built him a nuclear reactor.