The US, UN & Iraq II

And what if in the next few days The Main Attack is launched, and succeeds in timely manner? Or, what if The Big Attack is launched, and is met with WMD? Either are among the possible developments. I suspect The Attack is imminent, and that those who will launch The Attack are confident of the former, and prepared for the latter.

Snippets: Thermobaric Munitions may have been employed during recent strikes in Baghdad and elsewhere. It has been noted that uncharacteristically large and intense fires have erupted from a number of strike sites. Among the Design Targets for Thermobaric Munitions would be weaponized noxious agents. Admittedly, neither the use of Thermobaric Weapons, nor the reasons for the exceptional fires has been accorded any Official Comment. The questions have been raised, however, and speculation builds.

And where is Saddam, and why was his longtime, inseparable, unmistakable, personal bodyguard seen standing in his customary spot, while Saddam was nowhere to be seen and a deputy occupied the chair before the bodyguard? Security analyst are becoming more interested, and again, speculation abounds.

Then again, in wartime, building speculation abounds.

Timber

I'm very anxious to see what they will find in Tikrit (Saddams home town) and apparently most of his closest henchmen come from there as well.

Please enlighten us about the thermobaric bomb---I've been retired too long.

Hot tip .... on desktop news do a right click on the scroll and select 'channell directory'

You end up at the web site where you can select from a large list of news sources.
You can also change channels that way.

Wouldn't be surprised to find a secret subway from there to his palaces in Baghdad.

I discovered two bats in my garage today -- very cute but standoffish. Just went out in the dark to check on them and they're gonesville, probably out taking care of mosquitoes... I wish the bats in this thread would occupy themselves similarly!!

Timber -- I wonder about Saddam too -- and have absolutely no idea except a tickly feeling that (if he's not dead or wounded) he may be out of the country and may have been for over a week.

Thermobaric Weapons

Thermobaric Bombs were first used last yrear against caves in Afghanistan. They are essentially "Deep Penetrator" weapons. They exhibit blast propagation characteristics which suit them well for use against reinforced confined spaces and the type features significantly higher and considerably longer lasting temperature gradients than do typical military explosives. Their effectiveness against stored noxious agents stems from the extraordinary thermal component of the blast, which thoroughly incinerates even relatively non-flammable material within the effect envelope. The effect is enhanced appreciably if detonation occurs within a sturdy, confined space.

Watch Iran and the Shi'a militias in the coming days.
Watch for many more car bomb attempts (few successes).
The Kurds in the North will fight along side us with enthusiasm.
The Southern Shi'a, whom we betrayed last time, will sit and wait and wait until the word from Teheran comes.

Then

the demands of the Kurds for even more autonomy than they already have in Iraq and from the Turks (half of ancient Kurdistan is in present day Turkey)
the demands from the citizens of the South for reparations from the US from the last war
the demands from Iran for justice for the Shi'a
the protests from Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon over trade restrictions
The worldwide demands for the US to change it's stance on a Free Palestine State

will pull at the State Dept in seven different directions
and make the siege of Bagdad seem like a long wait in a movie line.

There are no easy victories, there should be none predicted.
There are no simple solutions to complex problems, none ought to be offered.
===
Joe

Tartarin wrote:

<probably out taking care of mosquitoes... I wish the bats in this thread would occupy themselves similarly!! >

Too busy swatting mosquitoes here-----

All forward units have been sitting tight for the past 48 hours and the two eastern advances have not achived any clear objective. If there is an advance I doubt it will be toward Baghdad but toward Al Kut by the 1st Marine Regiment. There is a highway that runs from Al Kut to Karbala which forms an outer ring around Baghdad on the south. I suspect that any immediate action will be to secure that road. This would place allied forces both east of the Tigris and west of the Eurphrates. As well as the 5th and 7th Marine Regiments holding the road in between. I doubt there will be an advance on Baghdad until the 4th Armord division is in place.

Isn't that a fairly long time away? Like 3 or 4 days at least?

What was the rush to start this thing if there weren't enough troops in place?

Britain and the United States suffered a fresh blow last night when their main justification for war was undermined by reports that special forces have failed to find any weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.
As Tony Blair launched a charm offensive to persuade the Arab world to understand his decision to go to war, senior officials in Washington said that intelligence information about weapons of mass destruction at 10 sites had proved to be unfounded.
The Washington Post reported yesterday that tests had proved negative at all "urgent" sites in the western desert. "All the searches have turned up negative," a staff officer told thenewspaper. "The munitions that have been found have all been conventional."
Special operations forces from the US, Britain and Australia are understood to have seized the sites which were believed by US central command to house chemical warheads, Scud missiles and eight-wheeled transporter-erector launchers, known as TELs.
Donald Rumsfeld, the US defence secretary, attempted to play down the findings. He told ABC's This Week that banned weapons were not in areas controlled by allied forces.
"We know where they are, they are in the area around Tikrit and Baghdad and east, west, south and north of that," he said.
But the failure to uncover weapons at sites identified by intelligence will be a severe blow to Tony Blair and George Bush, who attacked Iraq on the basis that Saddam Hussein has the weapons.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,926187,00.html

If there was one constant refrain in the months before the Iraq war began it was the charge that Saddam Hussein had gassed his own people.
Donald Rumsfeld mentioned it almost daily in recent weeks, while Tony Blair refers to the gas attacks on the Kurds in every big speech.
George Bush said in his state of the union address: "The dictator who is assembling the world's most dangerous weapons has already used them on whole villages, leaving thousands of his own citizens dead, blinded, or disfigured."
Yet past concern for Iraqi casualties of chemical and biological warfare (CBW) is not paralleled by an equal concern for Iraqis who could soon be affected by such weapons.
Strange morality, which mourns yesterday's victims, but mandates little or no action to save those who may fall tomorrow.
The coalition soldiers have their masks and suits, trained medical staff, and specialised decontamination units. The Iraqi military has apparently ample supplies of protective clothing and antidotes.
Iraqi civilians, except for a few of the privileged, have none of these things. And according to non-governmental organisations and refugee groups in Britain, preparations for civilian casualties are close to non-existent.
The American military has no spare capacity for dealing systematically with CBW casualties among Iraqis.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,926192,00.html

Anyone know anything about an 'ebomb'? I read a blurb about it last week then lost the bookmark. The gist of the article was that we dropped one on the TV station in Baghdad. The bomb was designed to emit an electronic pulse that is supposed to shut down any electrical devices within a certain distance of detonation.

I have got to do some about my bookmarks.

Joe Nation

Gee you have been busy with your crystal ball-----such optimism on your part----how can you stand it? Have you forgotten anything?

Let's see---I believe one of the favorites before the war was missiles into Israel----hasn't happened

Another was 100,000 to 500,000 civilian casualties in Baghdad----
the count now is around 500 even from the Iraqi propaganda machine.

The latest claptrap from the Anti-war crowd is "this war will last months". You all have short memories-----the greatest quality of the US soldier is their desire to "get it over with so they can go home to the wife and kids"

Another profound statement:

<There are no easy victories, there should be none predicted.
There are no simple solutions to complex problems, none ought to be offered. >

This type of thinking is what brings about "paralysis through analysis". Analyze it to death and then bring in some "experts from the UN who screwed up their own countries" and talk it to death then call on the US for some more money so they can talk some more.

Thank the Lord there are some people who can computerize the salient points, build in some flexibility in the plan and then act. We can not allow the tail to wag the dog as in this country with the vociferous self interest groups monopolizing the activities of the legislative branch ahead of the good of the majority. The ACLU is one good example-----if these people were even handed I would not complain but they have a one sided agenda.

Sorry Joe ---- I guess you get the idea I don't agree with you.

E Weapons

Electromagnetic Pulse Weapons have been developed which disable electronics, particularly solid-state circuits, while causing relatively little physical damage. A number of different mechanisms will fill the function. Precisely which of these mechanisms is utilized by US weapons has not been disclosed. Nor, explicity, has US possession of such weapons. There is no reason to doubt the US arsenal does indeed inventory them, probably in several configurations.

US forces have captured and secured six (6) yes thats six airfields in Iraq and fixed wing aircraft are NOW operating out of these airstrips. Most notably A-10s and AC 130 gunships. You have not heard much about these fantastic weapons platforms---you are about to.

"paralysis through analysis" a common adage of Richard Nixon. Perhaps if he had used a bit more analysis he would have finished his presidency.

Look around, perception. If you appraise honestly, you'll see that you are the beginning and end of all the ill-spiritedness on this thread.

Bush: "If we're a humble nation but strong, they'll welcome us."
From: Argument, today's Independent
Mr Bush should heed the humble words he spoke in his election campaign

Tartarin what about Australia's involvement in the War. Typical imperialists never happy to use Australia to win your bloody war however you neglect to acknowledge our efforts.

You Americans are very quiet about Israel's blatant breaches of United Nations reolutions.....maybe Timberlandko, you would be man enough to address this issue!

I agree with Perception.

I wish all typical imperialists on the planet were like Tartarin, I would feel much safer and held more hope for the sound future of international peace ;-)