[Clive]

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[Support Free Republic]

Hi mom!

[wimpycat]

Interesting article. Maybe the "walk softly, but carry a big stick" saying should be amended to "walk softly, but carry a big scalpel".

[Yardstick]

There is hope for the world yet.

[Beck_isright]

"Russia is repairing relations with the U.S."

Uh, no they are not. They are putting their lot with the weasals. Russia is going to be France Jr. soon, along with Canada.

[Kenno]

The Chicken Littles in the media should consider the old saying (in regard to the two Persian Gulf Wars): "Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me."

[The Great Satan]

Russia is repairing relations with the U.S.

Interesting how little heat Russia has taken from the administration. I have a suspicion Bush went to Putin 18 months ago and told him, "Vlad, we have a situation. Here's how you can help..." And Uncle Vlad said, "Okay, not a problem."

[The Great Satan]

Of course, Saddam is nowhere to be found. If we cut a deal with him, that would itself explain the amazingly rapid collapse of the regime, not to mention the absence of any resort to WMD.

Now, we do know that, shortly after 9-11, both the US and the UK publicly threatened to respond to any biological attack by Saddam with nuclear weapons. We also know that the US administration publicly offered Saddam an exile deal up until the 48 hours before the first bombing. We don't know what happened privately after that. We do know that the administration has gone to great lengths to keep Saddam's authorship of 9-11 and the subsequent anthrax threats ambiguous, through mechanisms which include but are not limited to the preposterous Amerithrax-Hatfill charade. We do know that the United States dressed up an a priori implausible and clearly ineffectual "assassination" attempt on Saddam with a bunch of disinformatzia about mistresses, ear prints, dopplegangers, med-evac gurneys, homing pigeons, etc. And, again, we do know that Saddam is nowhere to be found.

My guess is we laid it on the line for Saddam. I think we told him, "We know what you did, we know what you're threatening, and we're not going to let you get away with it. So, play by Marquis of Queensbury rules and you can have your Stalingrad -- if your people want to go to the barricades for you -- and you and your club-scum brats will get away with your lives, and a bit of pocket money to spend on hookers and gold-plated bathroom accessories. Follow through on your threat, and say goodbye to this earth." And Saddam said "You're bluffing." And we gave him and his minions a lot of time to think about it in a more-or-less rational frame of mind, we put them in a situation where there was no way they were going to come out covered in glory, we did what we could on the risk-containment side, we worked with the Russians to keep tabs on their psychological state and keep them focused on the carrot ("We don't use the stick"), and then we called Saddam's bluff. But we called it only when we knew he was ready to fold. Anything else wouldn't be prudent.

[MattinNJ]

IMHO, Castro and Mugabe should be next with Chavez in the on deck circle. If that makes me a chickenhawk neocon, so be it. Somehow I think the 4th is going to make a wrong left turn on there way to Tikrit and wont stop until they hit water.

[remitrom]

Yes, I am afraid that Canada has done untold damage to over a century of good relations. But then the PM's son in law is the major shareholder in France's top oil company...the one with big contracts in Iraq....so it was all about oil, up here in Canada anyway....

[txzman]

None are so blind as those who will not see, unless it's those whose hate for America clouds their judgment.

This should be the war cry for all conservatives in the next round of elections.

[Pearls Before Swine]

"Walking softly but carrying a big stick" is easier to do with 18 divisions than 10. Thanks, Bill, Hill, and Al.

[WOSG]

We should press the UN to revoke voting privileges for all the "rogue states" that dont live up to minimal standards with respect to human rights, representative government, and freedom (free speech, property rights, and freedom of religion, etc.)

[Peter Libra]

Remember the name. Peter Worthington, of the Toronto Sun. No, not the less than brilliant Toronto Star. Please do not confuse them. For those who cannot purchase the Sun, it is a conservative leaning newspaper. The style though is almost enough to make an old style conservative blink. Tabloid in size, easy to carry on a subway or bus, it also carries outrageous young female persons scantily clad. Just to keep things even, it shows certain males in poses. (I ignore them, of course).

Peter is trying to undo the damage the Prime Minister of Canada has done. Yes, Chretien seems hell bent on trying to sink our ship. What the heck, he is well fixed anyway. Keep on bashing away Peter.

[Exit148]

Thanks, Clive.

Peter Worthington is A-OK!

[optimistically_conservative]

There are people who hate America. They mistake this hatred for patriotism and justify this delusion by reciting events without context and exaggerating every flaw.

I believe this was called the counter-culture revolution that took hold of a disappointing number of baby boomers.

[nutmeg]

bump

[backhoe]

What we saw during Gulf War I was our military doctrine ( high tech ) versus Soviet doctrine ( throw a lot of low tech iron at the problem )-- and we all know how that turned out.

What we have just seen in the 3-Week War is Information-Tech,
( Some call it Hyperwarfare... )
or 21st Century warfare versus 20th Century...

What I would suggest, and call your attention to, is the fact that we, and Israel, are capable of waging 21st Century warfare, and the entire Arab world is not.

Proven fact, by recent events.

Believe me, lessons are being drawn, across the world...

[Grig]

"The "new" world order, if that's not too strong a phrase, is likely to congeal around American, British and Australian leadership"

And since there is no leadership in the Canadian government, Canada isn't part of it.