Replies

Remember when Saddam was the "not so bad" bad guy, who we supported and armed against the "bad" bad guy, Iran? Well apparently now, Saddam is the "bad" bad guy and Iran is the "not so bad" bad guy.

The State Dept. lacks a fully-functional crystal ball--you act based on the best information you have at the time. Nobody's perfect.

We had the opportuinity to eliminate this punk 12 years ago and we turned our back on it.

That was also the fault of the UN. Bush (41) was following their latest edict to liberate Kuwait only and not to storm Baghdad.

Too late the world has seen what an impotent POS the UN is.

SADDAM HUSSEIN'S SONS: One is flamboyant, the other is low-key

Both, however, have a reputation like dad's
March 19, 2003

BY SALAH NASRAWI
ASSOCIATED PRESS

CAIRO, Egypt -- When President George W. Bush gave Iraqi President Saddam Hussein until Wednesday to leave Iraq, he told him to take his sons with him.

While their styles are different, Uday Hussein, 39, and his brother, Qusay Hussein, 37, both have reputations for being as brutal and ruthless as their father.

Qusay Hussein, whom his father is believed to be grooming as his successor, is a low-key, ambiguous figure who moves in Saddam Hussein's shadow. His nickname among Iraqis is Mr. Snake.

His more widely known, flamboyant brother Uday Hussein calls himself Abu Sarhan, an Arabic euphemism for a wolf.

Characteristically, it was Uday Hussein who responded first to Bush's ultimatum, saying Bush is "unstable" and "should give up power in America with his family," in a statement distributed in Baghdad by the Iraqi Foreign Ministry.

Any attack on Iraq would leave "the wives and mothers of those who fight us constantly crying," he added. "They should not believe there is a single safe spot for them inside Iraq or outside Iraq."

Such talk is not unusual from Uday Hussein, who seemed to be Saddam Hussein's heir apparent before he was partially paralyzed in a 1996 assassination attempt. He lost favor with his father after a family rift five years ago.

Still, he remains a powerful figure in Iraq, although his extravagance and violent reputation have won him little popular support.

He commands Fedayeen Saddam, a paramilitary militia used by the regime to oppress internal foes. He has a seat in parliament, runs Iraq's most popular newspaper, Babil, and popular Youth TV channel, and heads the national Olympic committee.

Qusay Hussein, who for years has been in charge of the elite Republican Guard Corps and his father's personal security, was put in charge Saturday of defending the capital and heartland against any attack.

In meetings between Saddam Hussein and his senior commanders, Qusay Hussein always appears in well-tailored suits and kisses his father's hands, a sign of respect.

In his capacity as head of the special intelligence service, he is in charge of some of the notorious detention centers. Iraqi dissidents who worked close to Qusay Hussein say he was responsible for the killing of many political activists.

In 1998, Iraqi opposition and human-rights groups accused Qusay Hussein of ordering the executions of thousands of political prisoners. The reason: to make room for new prisoners in crowded jails. The report could not be independently verified.