French lawmaker urges Pope to become Iraq human shield

Reuters ^ | March 17, 2003

[Dog Gone]

PARIS, March 17 (Reuters) - The only way left to avoid war in Iraq is for Pope John Paul to rush to Baghdad to be "the protector of humanity's values," a French parliamentary deputy said on Monday.

Didier Julia, a maverick conservative who has visited Iraq twice in the past six months, noted the pope would be a suitable "human shield" because he has spoken out forcefully against war.

"Right now, only one thing seems useful to me now, and that's that the pope goes at the last minute to block aggression against Iraq," he told France's i-television.

"I would really like the pope to serve as the protector of humanity's values," he said.

The pope issued a passionate plea for peace on Sunday, saying he had lived through World War Two and felt obliged to tell the world: "Never again war."

Julia, a member of the centre-right UMP party of France's anti-war President Jacques Chirac, said he visited Iraq to try to help protect Iraq's many archeological treasures, which he said could be looted during and after a war.

"There won't be only a war against people, there will be the looting of the whole country," he said. "Underground groups of looters are already getting ready."

[freedomlover]

Got Flame-Proof suit?

[concerned about politics]

"I would really like the pope to serve as the protector of humanity's values France,"

[kevao]

Man, are the French weasels ever desperate. Just what will our boys find in ChIraq's Iraq? It's sure to be interesting.

[vishnu2]

France, under Napoleon, got most of her art treaures by looting the rest of Europe.

[CaptRon]

That whole country is nuts.

[eyespysomething]

"Underground groups of looters that we sent in are already getting ready."

[concerned about politics]

he visited Iraq to try to help protect Iraq's many archeological treasures

Yeh, like French anthrax, missiles, tanks, bombs, damning documents. All the important treasures the French care so much about.

[eyespysomething]

I have got tears running down my face this made me laugh so hard!!

[pachanga]

I am astonished that, day after day, the tartouffe french keep coming up with more reasons for me to despise them. The blatant hypocrisy and egoism of these invertebrates is shocking. It's as if bj clinton sporting a beret, a nice sweater and a bad haircut had himself cloned into a whole country.

[onedoug]

He means humanism's values.

[ArrogantBustard]

The Pope is on record that it's Saddam Hussein's responsibility to avoid war. Maybe Alexy should go over there and play human shield. It would be right up his alley.

[concerned about politics]

The Pope is on record that it's Saddam Hussein's responsibility to avoid war.

La Curses! La Foiled again!

[duckman]

Translation: 'Not me I ain't going. no way.'

[NYer]

Bumping the catholic list!

[Lee Heggy]

And then after the pope saves Iraq he will convert the entire Islamic world to Catholicism and then the pope will make all of our automobiles non-polluting and then the pope will cure everyone with cancer or aids and then the pope will rescue every endangered species and then he will re-plant the rain forests everywhere and then, and then, and then.....

[johnb838]

The pope issued a passionate plea for peace on Sunday, saying he had lived through World War Two and felt obliged to tell the world: "Never again war."

For God's Sake, would he rather have happen to Poland again what happened to them TWICE than a war? Is he saying it was a MISTAKE to liberate Poland from the Nazis? I'm afraid that this pope is either quite confused and befuddled, his memory is gone, or he isn't even making these statements, it is the liberal theologians around him doing so without his knowledge.

[johnb838]

What about Chirac & Vile Pan?

Try 'ChIraq' and 'Vile Lapin' (evil rabbit)

[concerned about politics]

It's as if bj clinton sporting a beret, a nice sweater and a bad haircut had himself cloned into a whole country.

Two Frenchmen were strolling along a boulevard when one of them gasps and says, "Mon Dieu - here come my wife and mistress!"
"Sacre blei!" exclaimed his friend. "I was about to say the same thing!"

[ArrogantBustard]

There's another possibility: AFP, AP, and Reuters are quoting about half of what he says. Unless one is jumping up and down cheering for war as the best thing since sliced bread, it's fairly easy to take a half-quote and make someone sound like an America-hating pacifist.