Elonka wrote:

] I agree that I think the protests definitely *have* had an
] effect in delaying things, otherwise the war would probably be
] over and done with by now. And it's one thing that concerns
] me greatly, is that the longer we delay, the more boobytraps
] that we're going to have to deal with when/if we go in.

there's not going to be a great danger of boobytraps affecting the troops, since I believe the plan is to use air power and coordinated artillery. There won't be much left to boobytrap. Infantry will only come into play when it's actually time to grab Hussein and mop up probably.

] As for the launching of chemical or biological attacks on our
] troops (or on Israel), I keep in mind that though the
] stockpiles are almost certainly there *somewhere*, they've got
] to be pretty well hidden since the U.N. inspectors haven't
] been able to find them yet. Whether they're buried near the
] "low tide" level of the Tigris River, or are stored in bunkers
] deep beneath the streets of Baghdad (or Saddam's birthplace
] town, which is where he's evidently been sending reinforcement
] troops recently), or wherever else they're stashed, it's going
] to take some time to access those stockpiles and properly
] weaponize them. In other words, they're not easily accessible
] in every battalion's ammunition stockpile, to load in to the
] missiles at a moment's notice.

good point. Frankly, I doubt that they'll even be able to get a shot off.

There has been mention that in Dessert Storm, the US forces said that if Hussein used chemical weapons, that the US would nuke his hometown. Schwartzkopf confirmed this recently. I'm sure there's been other communique to this effect.

] Further, if there's an attempt to rapidly load chemical and/or
] biological substances into warheads, by troops who haven't
] been properly trained on how to handle such materials,
] accidents are going to happen. It's actually something that
] I've been wondering whether the U.N. inspectors have been
] checking... Have they been reviewing the Iraqi Army training
] manuals and procedures and instructors, to see if there was
] any reference to WMD-handling techniques? Who did the
] training in the past? How many troops were trained on that
] type of handling? Where are they now? Where was the training
] done? Where are the instructors now?

another good point.

] Another thing I wonder if the U.N. inspectors are checking, is
] the "accidental exposure" factor. How many cases of "run of
] the mill" anthrax occur in Iraq over the course of a year,
] from routine exposure to farm animals? And are there any
] areas in Iraq where the doctors are noting a higher than usual
] level of infection? That would definitely be a place to focus
] inspections, IMHO.

Despite being very progressive, I doubt Iraq has the data, or at least certainly the accuracy in data, necessary to analyze this.

RE: ABCNEWS.com : Saddam Could Launch First Strike