Re: Brin Calls for an Attack on Riyadh Re: Brin: David Frum onthe War Plans

[d.brin]

1.  I was being sardonic about attacking Riyadh.  Just recognizing 
their enmity would enable us to demand that they choose between their 
mansions and jihad.  Right now, we allow them to have both. WHat a 
deal.  I wish my daddy owned a thousand oil wells and Dick Cheney.

2. Our forces were 24 hours from liberating Basra in 1991.  With that 
city and the rest of southern Iraq safe, and the kurdish north safe, 
Saddam would have had no oil and no victims.  We could have then 
sifted through our 200,000 prisoners for enough to make several eager 
divisions of the Army of New Iraq and sent THEM to Baghdad.  Or let 
Saddam stew till someone shot him.  With no oil, and steadily 
strengthening Shiite and Kurdish republics hemming him in, his days 
would be numbered.

It was a no-brainer.  And hell yes I would have voted against Colin 
Powell after that.  Any time any place anywhen anyhow.

The record shows that it was frantic messages from Ankara and Riyadh 
that made Bush Sr. call a halt.  They hated the idea of free 
Kurdistan and free shiite arabs.  Each of them have huge minorities 
of those groups nearby.  And you will never, ever see a Bush make a 
decision that harms the interests of a Saudi prince.

Again, these are the turkeys who made this situation. They dishonored 
us when we betrayed the shiites (see the movie Three Kings).  They 
are now waging this war in the dumbest possible way, though I pray 
the competence of our troops will prevail.

I didn't say any of that.  When W crosses the Rubicon, I supported 
him all along.
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