Hussein may mass his military in major cities

SF Chronicle ^ | 8-8-02 | Greg Miller, John Hendren LA Times

[Oldeconomybuyer]

Washington -- Iraqi President Saddam Hussein has told regional government officials that he aims to thwart any U.S. invasion by avoiding open desert fighting and massing his military in major cities where civilian and American casualties would be highest, current and former U.S. intelligence officials said.

[Long Cut]

Memo to So-Dumb Insane:
From: The U.S. of frickin' A.:
Subject: Idiocy

Lips, screwing with a country that uses these:

has never proven to work well. Enjoy!

P.S. Glad you're feelin' good, BI-atch!

[mikesmad]

and take over the oil fields as the price

If they hold out long enought (yea right) we could pay for a massive upgrade of the military.

[Chad Fairbanks]

The hardcore followers were the ones I meant... but even the ones with little fighting spirit can be dangerous if backed into a corner... so why take that risk?

Iraq, and any of our other enemies around the world should get down on their prayer rugs 5 times a day and thank their god that I am not in charge of running the war on terror - I'm nowhere near as nice as those who are currently in charge ;0)

[Salgak]

B-52. . . when it absolutely, positively has to be flattened overnight. . . .

Mind you, I'm biased: I have 1242 hours in the B-52G (g)

[Long Cut]

Hell, I'm not biased, I just like good machinery. I've got 2300 hours in ORIONS myself. The U.S's "ace-in-the-hole" has always been our outstanding air power.

[Pistolshot]

1982.7.23 [U. S. A.] Additional production of neutron bombs by President R.Reagan. 2200 bombs including those for NATO army.

Gee, I wonder if these are gonna be used this time???

[Hunble]

Iraq, and any of our other enemies around the world should get down on their prayer rugs 5 times a day and thank their god that I am not in charge of running the war on terror - I'm nowhere near as nice as those who are currently in charge ;0)

I nominate this for the Quote Of The Day!

[Pistolshot]

Don't forget the cannon-cockers. Throughout most of the US Army history, up until air-power, artillery has been the 'fabric-softener'.

[Young Werther]

Surround Baghdad and lay seige to the city. With no food or water, how long will they last?

[Dead Corpse]

If they are going to use chem weapons on us in their cities, they should be considered fair game.

Problem solved.

[PLK]

Using cities as shields what a pussy. He's gonna hide behind all the women and children.

Precedent set in Vietnam, the only difference was the Viet Cong spread out and hid among the villagers instead of in large urban areas. Communists and other power-mad dictators have absolutely NO moral objection to killing their own civilians, including women and children. That alone is enough to justify wiping them off the face of the earth.

[laredo44]

Using cities as shields what a pussy. He's gonna hide behind all the women and children.

UFB, eh? When Saddam refers to the "mother of all battles" he's is talking about actual mothers. These women and their children ARE his battle plan. Is there any less manly religion than the Islam practiced by many in the Middle East?

[Young Werther]

Sixty BUF sorties with cruise missiles aimed at all his "castles" to begin with. When they draw back "behind the burkhas" we do what an earlier post suggested, to wit, pump the oil build the military infrastructure.

The we establish the southern state of YOURS with Basra as its capital. The southern fly zone will now be a separate entity, (with most of the oil and a government favorable to USofA. In the northern fly zone are we establish a Kurdish state named UP.

We then tell Saddam. "Up Yours"!

[madvlad]

Ever here of the 'seige' strategy?

"Surround and Pound" in microcosm.

The oil will be free and a large staging base
can be cut w/ convenient access to all downtown
Iraqi cities.

Meanwhile, airpower can be surgically applied
at will.

Mad Vlad

[Frumious Bandersnatch]

Saddam is a fool if he does that.  All we have to do is contain him in the cities.  We wouldn't have to actually attack.  Let's set out about 5 to 10 mile away, and as he attacks, we take him out.  Anytime he opens up with artillery or scuds, we take them out.  While he is interdicted, we have the entire countryside and do some nation building.  All it takes is patience.  Eventually, he will have to come out to fight, and it will be just like shooting ducks in a barrel.

[joesnuffy]

This will backfire on him....the world will see him for the butcher he truly is..and his complete lack of care for his own people...They will die but the world will condemn him...
And if they dont.....WGAS

[Centurion2000]

He's an ARAB - can we expect anything less?

Well said

[Hunble]

Vicksburg

Abraham Lincoln said, "Vicksburg is the key. The war can't end until the key is in our pocket." The South agreed that , "Vicksburg is the nail that holds the two hinges together." Vicksburg, a city in Mississippi, guarded the Mississippi between Memphis and New Orleans. It would give control of the river to whichever side controlled it. In the battle of Vicksburg, the Union had more than twice as many troops as the Confederates. The Union fought with 46,000 men, the Confederates with 22,000.

On July 4, 1863, Abraham Lincoln received good news. Pemberton surrendered to Grant. General Ulysses S. Grant captured Vicksburg giving control of the city to the Union. The defeat made Grant a northern war hero.