[barbara100 at jps.net]

> > It's not very logical for you to deduce, Jbor, that the Stop the War crowd
> > thinks it's "totally OK" that Saddam launch an attack first. How did you
> > figure that? 
> 
> It's actually pretty obvious.

It's not obvious.  It's not even true, how could it be obvious?

> http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/stories/s695405.htm
> 
> I saw part of that interview. Butler stated that Saddam was starting to
> develop nuclear weapons 20 years ago, and he confirmed that Saddam has had a
> nuclear weapons program in place since the UN inspectors left Iraq in 1998.
> He spoke about the new evidence in the Blair Dossier which showed that
> Saddam had been acquiring weapons-grade uranium from Africa. Butler said he
> was absolutely certain that Saddam currently has (biological/chemical)
> weapons of mass destruction. Did you even read the transcript? It shows up
> your "Saddam's got nothin'" argument for the arrant nonsense it is.
> 
> best


Okay, I'm sorry.  He's got "something." But the range is 600 miles at most (according to Butler), and they way the President's been scaring the American public, you'd think he was 3 weeks away from nuking the whole world. 

Of course I read the transcript, Jbor.  Did you?
Here's what Richard Butler says about nuclear weapons in Iraq.  I encourage you to read the rest of the interview. 

And all that's lacking is the raw materials?

Well that's typically been the case with Iraq for the last 10 years and I believe it remains the case. The 3 things you need to make a bomb are the know-how, the equipment and the material. They know how. They have the equipment. They've always lacked the material - the basic core - in the centre of a bomb the size of you know a rockmelon, is this core of highly fissile material - that's what they've not had. 

And all that's lacking is the raw materials?

Well that's typically been the case with Iraq for the last 10 years and I believe it remains the case. The 3 things you need to make a bomb are the know-how, the equipment and the material. They know how. They have the equipment. They've always lacked the material - the basic core - in the centre of a bomb the size of you know a rockmelon, is this core of highly fissile material - that's what they've not had.