Britain can attack Iraq without a UN mandate: Hoon

Agence France-Presse ^ | 3/25/02

[Husker24]

The U.S will not use nukes against Saddam. I saw an interview with George Bush Sr. a couple of years after the war. During the war the option was open to use nuclear weapons, like it is now. Bush Sr. said he wouldnt have even used them if Saddam had used Chemical weapons, it was all a bluff and it worked. The same thing is going on now, we will never use nuclear weapons unless attacked with nuclear weapons first.

[Wraith]

The same thing is going on now, we will never use nuclear weapons unless attacked with nuclear weapons first.

Or by biological or chemical weapons. Yes a very strong message to send to the opponent Sadam. I'm sure he is thinking things over very carefully. Your probably right that small nukes will not be used by the U.S./British, but can you predict what a cornered animal will do?

[Kate22]

I wouldn't get pissed off about any reasonable question. I'm not some kind of virago honest (well only in the most positive way)!

I would say that over half of the British public would be against such an attack. There are several reasons: there is a perception that it's pointless and just scapegoating Iraq for 9/11; it is seen as being an 'easy target' (after all the suicide bombers were from Saudi and Egypt - not Iraq or Afghanistan); and it seems especially harsh against Iraq where Britain and the US have been continually bombing and the population have suffered horrendously through sanctions.

Then there are some more obvious reasons such as the large Muslim population in parts of Britain (1% of all British voters). There's a major conflict because Blaaair wants to be liked by every section of the electorate and is particularly keen to 'engage' the British Muslims.

[Schweinhund]

"Having your own essentially invulnerable nuclear powered thermonuclear warhead ballistic missile submarines means never having to ask permission."

-in the same way that having your newfound enemies sneak into your cities and killing civilians only means paying the price for this attitude?

[Anamensis]

Why are the British people so against such an attack, just curious....no need to get pissed off.

From what I've seen, the average Brit is rabidly anti-Semitic, and it goes very deep and very far back. A quick re-reading of The Merchant of Venice goes a long way in explaining why the modern day bank-guarding gnomes of the Harry Potter books look like old Nazi posters of Jews. Thus they are by and large very pro-Palestinian and their sympathies extend to anyone helping finance the Palestinians. Just MHO.