[ARCADIA]

I think there is some truth to the viewpoints in this article. I think the Republicans want the Jews to migrate from the Democrats, much like the South and the evangelical Christians did.

I also think that the war in Iraq has a lot to do with Israel's security. And, all the countries in the Middle East are artificial entities, created by the British after WWI with no thought to their ethnic composition. So redrawing the map is not a big deal, either to the people actually on the ground or in a historical sense.

But the unspoken reason for attacking Iraq is not in this article. The reason is this --

Eliminating Saddam frees up Iraq's oil for sale in the world markets. This vastly reduces Saudi and Iranian power and allows the US to better protect itself from the murderous religious fundamentalists that run both countries. Right now if the US starts pressuring them, they can destroy our economy in months simply by cutting off the oil supply. With Iraqi oil in US hands, their power will be much less.

BTW, I think that Saudi Arabia is next.

[Argus]

Your points are all well taken, but I think the real reason for attacking Iraq is 9/11/01, and the fact that Saddam is the single most high-profile and bellicose leading figure on the Arab side. You take down the biggest loudmouth first and that gets the others' attention.