Amen! Something along this line, combined with a massive "death ride" assault to cause maximum casualties and disruption, is really the only chance Saddam has. He is not a fool, but he has demonstrated many times that he is not fully in contact with reality. He pays close attention to the fifth column in the West, and this is interpreted in terms of the standard post Vietnam leftist paradigm. There is no doubt at all that he overestimated their influence in 1990, and did not truly believe that the West would resort to war.
He could well believe that massive casualties would bring down the Bush administration. After all, he hears that many Americans, including "noted leaders" like Ramsey Clark (actually a moonbat conspiracy theorist), have called for Bush's impeachment. Clark, btw, is Saddam's legal counsel in the United States and his views may have a certain influence on the Iraqi dictator. Saddam may also have heard that sons of Goebbels speakers at pro-terrorist peace rallies have said that he is more legitimate than George Bush since he, Saddam, "was at least elected." Thanks to the peace movement, he probably overestimates the effect of his propaganda, and may therefore overestimate his own chances of survival.
Saddam knows that a first strike is a poor chance, but he may believe that success is not impossible, and it is the only one he has.