View Full Version : Galloway: Murder of Blair Would Be "Morally Justified"
Crazed Rabbit
05-26-2006, 06:45
What a loon. I'm surprised he's managed to stay in office.
The Respect MP George Galloway has said it would be morally justified for a suicide bomber to murder Tony Blair.
In an interview with GQ magazine, the reporter asked him: "Would the assassination of, say, Tony Blair by a suicide bomber - if there were no other casualties - be justified as revenge for the war on Iraq?"
Mr Galloway replied: "Yes, it would be morally justified. I am not calling for it - but if it happened it would be of a wholly different moral order to the events of 7/7. It would be entirely logical and explicable. And morally equivalent to ordering the deaths of thousands of innocent people in Iraq - as Blair did."
From:
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/article601356.ece
I don't recall the order from Blair to the British troops saying "kill thousands of innocent people". Ah well.
Here's a fun bit:
Mr Galloway yesterday made a surprise appearance on Cuban television with the Caribbean island's Communist dictator, Fidel Castro - whom he defended as a "lion" in a political world populated by "monkeys".
Mr Galloway shocked panellists on a live television discussion show in Havana by emerging on set mid-transmission to offer passionate support for Castro. Looking approvingly into each others' eyes, the pair embraced.
I guess old tyrannical socialists who trample human liberty for the "common good" (or want to) have a thing for each other.
Crazed Rabbit
King Ragnar
05-26-2006, 09:25
Silly Fat Communist, who needed to go into the Big Brother house for attention.
I don't believe in murder even of those who have caused the murders of others - which is one of the reasons for my stance on the death penalty, etc - but you can see what Galloway is stating.
If an unemployed Sunni in Iraq who feels he has to blow himself up for his country, people and himself to have a future and he takes out Blair, it would probably be a fair result considering what Blair had done to him. Sort of a self defence attack. Not that I would really like to see it, I would prefere blair sort the problems in Iraq, but after the news conference last night, there seems to be no hope, now he is on about reforming the UN, bloody hell.
Vladimir
05-26-2006, 13:08
Ahh, nothing like good moral relitavism. Nothing is wrong with anything so do whatever you want. Is this story verified and credible? I think I liked him better when he was called "Boy George" and had a few hits in the '80's.
I dislike Galloway. But on this point I agree. If leaders make wars then they should be prepared to get a little blowback.
Vladimir
05-26-2006, 13:18
Really? So you'd be OK with your PM being assonated? You've just lost so much credibility and respect in my eyes. That's the leader of your country, he represents you. If you want him to get fired that's one thing but you're ok with someone trying to kill him.
Duke Malcolm
05-26-2006, 13:36
Ah, poor Gorgeous George... this year has been devastating for him. First Big Brother, then the ditty about blowing up Blair, then Castro...
I find it hard to defend these actions of my compatriot...
You've just lost so much credibility and respect in my eyes. That's the leader of your country, he represents you. If you want him to get fired that's one thing but you're ok with someone trying to kill him.
You don't seem to understand the principles of the Parliamentary Democracy and Constitutional Monarchy. Blair represents the Labour Party and the constituency of Sedgefield. HM the Queen represents the country. Blair leads the Labour Party, HM the Queen leads the country.
Rodion Romanovich
05-26-2006, 13:45
Not morally justified, because the decision to go to war was hardly Blair's decision alone, but rather the decision of many people from his party together - maybe he was even against it personally. The crime that was committed was that Iraq was attacked without bothering making the justification proper. Given how Saddam was, there were some quite good possibilities of making the justification proper, but with all those ways of justifying the war there was also a chance that Saddam would meet the demands and a peaceful solution would be met - something Blair and Bush hardly considered acceptable.
A justification of war is only proper if you would have given reasonable demands, so that the other part is given a chance to cooperate and avoid war, and not try as hard as possible to make it impossible for the opponent unable to meet the demands to make sure war can't be avoided. For instance "give us bin Laden" isn't a reasonable demand (neither USA nor Britain have been capable of finding him even after occupying Afghanistan and Iraq, nor by spies), nor is "hand over your non-existing WMDs to us or we attack". The fact that Iraq was never given any chance to meet the demands needed for peace (because the demands were unreachable to any human being), indicates that there was a strong will from American and British leadership that the war should be carried out no matter what, and the connections of American and British officials with oil business is well known and confirmed.
So sure, Blair has taken official responsibility for a horrible crime, and as such could be subject to punishment for it by law (Hague tribunal), but I personally think, from a moral rather than legal standingpoint, that he should be allowed to leave politics in peace and without punishment. It's his leaving the politics that is what both Iraqis and British citizens demand, not his death. His death can never be a morally justified goal to anyone, but I believe some would consider it a morally justified means, if he doesn't leave politics by free will soon enough, whatever "soon enough" means in their eyes.
One thing that makes it highly unjust to prosecute or kill Blair, is the fact that the masses didn't take their responsibility to protest and advocate the overthrowing of Blair's government early enough - the real protests from 75% of the population didn't begin until after the attack. Blair must have thought he acted with support from his people even though he was not. This makes neither the people nor Blair guilty - rather whatever society structure made this misunderstanding happen is what is guilty for the crime. Punishing a society structures with jail or death penalty would be ridiculous ~:), but finding a human scapegoat in place of punishing whatever society structure was really responsible is even more ridiculous.
What future PMs of Britain know now is that the British people hardly support wars like the Iraq war, so in any future case where war is started by the PM on such loose grounds you can talk about the PM being guilty. We can also learn that it's possible to by accident enter the road towards dictatorship and excessive violence, if we take small steps towards it at the time eventually many people have many people they hate, but in fact it's society structures they should really hate. Nobody has responsibility and guilt for this action, but at the same time, the action is such a horrible one that we must find a way to avoid it from repeating itself, if necessary by making sure our society structures in the future can point out someone as guilty if actions like these were to be carried out, and that it should be clear already before the action is taken, who would be held responsible and prosecuted for it.
Vladimir
05-26-2006, 13:54
You don't seem to understand the principles of the Parliamentary Democracy and Constitutional Monarchy. Blair represents the Labour Party and the constituency of Sedgefield. HM the Queen represents the country. Blair leads the Labour Party, HM the Queen leads the country.
With all due respect I don't believe you have a proper understanding of how foreigners and Britons alike view the Prime Minister. How many times to you hear: "Oi, the Queen's really buggering up the country." (sorry, aussie slang is more fun) or hear her referenced when referring to bad policy decisions. No, the Prime Minister very much represents your country just like our President represents ours. When people look at the budget deficit they blame the President, not the Congress that creates and votes on the budget. The British monarchy is an abstraction while Parliament runs the (U.S. Federal equivalent of the) UK.
Mount Suribachi
05-26-2006, 14:06
Ah, poor Gorgeous George... this year has been devastating for him. First Big Brother, then the ditty about blowing up Blair, then Castro...
Yep, so bad that he got his own show, Saturday and Sunday evenings on national radio, where he is free to spout his hatred. I'm sure when he's sat in his villa in Portugal counting his earnings from BB and his radio show + his MP's salary + all the money he gets from his speaking engagements (increased since his BB appearance) + all hundreds of thousands he's made by taking to court any newspaper that so much as looks at him funny (+ all the money he may or may not have made off his mate Saddam), I'm sure when he's sat there in his designer suits smoking his Cuban cigars spouting off about "the working man", I'm sure he's thinking about what a bad year its been. Oh, and Celebrity Fit Club wanted him too, but he wasn't fat enough, so that was some more £££ our "man of the people" just missed out on. :furious3:
I despise Galloway, but, I think he actually has a point here. We were more than happy to try and off Saddam when he was in power, under that same logic, Blair as the man who gives the orders is a legitimate target. I would have more respect for the terrorists if they'd tried to blow up Blair rather than a bunch of innocent passengers on the underground.
Duke Malcolm technically you are correct that the Queen our Head of State and supreme commander of the Armed Forces, but the PM is the one that calls the shots.
Duke Malcolm
05-26-2006, 15:13
Yes, the PM calls the shots, but Vladimir said that the PM is the leader and representative of the nation and that if we let someone else kill him, we should be ashamed of ourselves.
Tony Blair does not represent the whole country, just those people who voted for him in Sedgefield. While the PM does call the shots, he is not our leader, he is only leader of the majority party of the lower house of Parliament. The common man has no duty to serve him, honour him, or any such thing. He shall be gone in a few years.
English assassin
05-26-2006, 15:23
I don't know how to break this to you, your Grace, but I'm a common man, and if Brenda imagines I feel any duty to serve or honour her she is sadly deluded.
Though not as deluded as Charlie "I'm a very important person with important things to say" Windsor.
solypsist
05-26-2006, 15:32
sounds like someone is still smarting over the total pounding Galloway gave the Republican led U.S. Senate
InsaneApache
05-26-2006, 15:32
Brenda! roflmfao...:laugh4:
Duke Malcolm
05-26-2006, 15:42
I don't know how to break this to you, your Grace, but I'm a common man, and if Brenda imagines I feel any duty to serve or honour her she is sadly deluded.
I don't mean it like that, it's just that the Queen is supposed to be the representative of the country, Blair is supposed to represent his own interests.
Vladimir
05-26-2006, 15:44
sounds like someone is still smarting over the total pounding Galloway gave the Republican led U.S. Senate
That would be...you?
Pannonian
05-26-2006, 16:49
With all due respect I don't believe you have a proper understanding of how foreigners and Britons alike view the Prime Minister. How many times to you hear: "Oi, the Queen's really buggering up the country." (sorry, aussie slang is more fun) or hear her referenced when referring to bad policy decisions. No, the Prime Minister very much represents your country just like our President represents ours. When people look at the budget deficit they blame the President, not the Congress that creates and votes on the budget. The British monarchy is an abstraction while Parliament runs the (U.S. Federal equivalent of the) UK.
The Prime Minister just a Minister who happens to run the country (the term was originally used to refer to the monopolising of executive power by Robert Walpole). He deserves no more respect as an elected representative than any other elected representative, including Galloway. Don't expect the rest of us to feel aggrieved on his behalf because of some non-existent special status. If you've seen him on any of his masochism campaigns (so-called because he volunteers to face a usually abusive public), you'll know that he doesn't expect any special treatment as PM.
Vladimir
05-26-2006, 17:01
The Prime Minister just a Minister who happens to run the country (the term was originally used to refer to the monopolising of executive power by Robert Walpole). He deserves no more respect as an elected representative than any other elected representative, including Galloway. Don't expect the rest of us to feel aggrieved on his behalf because of some non-existent special status. If you've seen him on any of his masochism campaigns (so-called because he volunteers to face a usually abusive public), you'll know that he doesn't expect any special treatment as PM.
Yes and neither did Winston Churchill I'm sure. Who represented the UK at Yalta?
Hah! Check this (http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060525/wl_uk_afp/britainattackspolicesecurity_060525122009;_ylt=AkVVl.dubldBqOgwSOKX8gS9Q5gv;_ylu=X3oDMTBiMW04NW9mBHN lYwMlJVRPUCUl)out!
Really? So you'd be OK with your PM being assonated? You've just lost so much credibility and respect in my eyes. That's the leader of your country, he represents you. If you want him to get fired that's one thing but you're ok with someone trying to kill him.
I'll just have to find a way to live without your adoration Vladimir.
If you go fighting wars then you should expect to face danger. The very fact that he is surrounded by security service people is an admission that such an attack is justified.
Ahh, nothing like good moral relitavism.
For once I agree with Vladimir. George Galloway (and JAG and several others here) seem to be casually slipping from "Person X thinks killing Blair is morally justified" to "Killing Blair is morally justified".
Sure we can all understand why some person X might be mad at Blair and think it is morally justified - where person X might be some Sunni militant who lost his job, his country to the Shiites, his sense of national pride when his land was invaded, maybe lost some of his friends/family, etc. Heck, I even believe Osama Bin Laden thinks what he did was "morally justified" (even though I think it was morally despicable).
But saying "Person X thinks killing Blair is morally justified" is light years from being able to say "Killing Blair is morally justified". To say the latter implies you, George Galloway, whoever, agree with person X.
Or if you think it does not mean that, you have no moral compass and so no place in politics or commenting on politics.
solypsist
05-26-2006, 17:38
Galloway said it would be morally justified to personally attack the leader of a nation that invaded your country. i see no difference between attacking the soldiers of an enemy country and atacking the leader who ordered them into battle.
of course the Gaurdian omits teh context of the question in the GQ article and only printed the reply in part.
I don't see anyone crying over the bombing of Osama's hideouts in a bid to kill him after he ordered the attack on the WTC. So what's the difference here?
Marcellus
05-26-2006, 17:39
If you go fighting wars then you should expect to face danger. The very fact that he is surrounded by security service people is an admission that such an attack is justified.
Hardly - it simply recognises that such an attack is a real danger. I dislike Blair as much as the next man, but murder is not justified. If you don't like him, then don't vote Labour.
Pannonian
05-26-2006, 17:42
Yes and neither did Winston Churchill I'm sure. Who represented the UK at Yalta?
In his capacity as PM, he acted as the representative of British interests. If he suggested that he should be accorded a special moral status as the leader of the country, he'd have been thrown out and consigned to an asylum. As an expert and historian of British parliamentary democracy, he would have understood this better than anyone.
Hah! Check this (http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060525/wl_uk_afp/britainattackspolicesecurity_060525122009;_ylt=AkVVl.dubldBqOgwSOKX8gS9Q5gv;_ylu=X3oDMTBiMW04NW9mBHN lYwMlJVRPUCUl)out!
So the PM is given extra protection while in that capacity. How does that equate to the moral outrage you expect from us, that even Blair himself does not expect? You say that Duke Malcolm does not understand how Britons see the PM as the leader of their country. Perhaps you should first explain your vision to Blair, since even he does not share it, since even he sees himself as but another elected representative who happens to lead the executive branch of government.
Blair's Iraq interview on Newsnight from February 2003, an example of how he is handled, and how he expects to be handled by the British public. The BBC site probably has other, more recent examples of his masochism campaigns.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/newsnight/2732979.stm
Pannonian
05-26-2006, 17:46
Hardly - it simply recognises that such an attack is a real danger. I dislike Blair as much as the next man, but murder is not justified. If you don't like him, then don't vote Labour.
The outrage should be over suggested violence to a British citizen and an elected MP. This "leader of the country" BS is irrelevant.
Duke Malcolm
05-26-2006, 17:55
Yes, quite right, Pannonian. It is the right of every Briton to know that the weight of his country is behind him should any injustice befall him overseas. Or at least it was...
Marcellus
05-26-2006, 18:09
The outrage should be over suggested violence to a British citizen and an elected MP. This "leader of the country" BS is irrelevant.
I completely agree.
Galloway said it would be morally justified to personally attack the leader of a nation that invaded your country.
Well I would like to see the transcript of the interview. You are wrong if the following reported exchange is true:
the reporter asked him: "Would the assassination of, say, Tony Blair by a suicide bomber - if there were no other casualties - be justified as revenge for the war on Iraq?"
Mr Galloway replied: "Yes, it would be morally justified."
That's pretty unequivocal. It doesn't matter what preceded the reporters question or what flannel followed Galloway's sentence. People - especially those who would lead - should say what they mean and mean what they say.
I suspect Gorgeous George just got carried away with the love of his own voice or by his hate of Tony Blair. He's not a person to take seriously, no matter how much he spanked your Senate.
solypsist
05-26-2006, 18:20
I note that he said it would be morally justified, not morally justifiable. I also note that no-one in this thread - including Galloway - is calling for it.
The nuanced difference here indicates that Galloway is saying it would be morally OK, not merely that it would be found to be morally OK by those actually doing it. Frankly, he could have stepped more lightly by saying that Blair was a legitimate target (which he clearly is, if we're in a war as they keep saying), but he actually went further by saying that he viewed it as morally acceptable for someone to kill Blair for his actions.
That's pretty unequivocal. It doesn't matter what preceded the reporters question or what flannel followed Galloway's sentence. People - especially those who would lead - should say what they mean and mean what they say.
Hardly - it simply recognises that such an attack is a real danger. I dislike Blair as much as the next man, but murder is not justified. If you don't like him, then don't vote Labour.
So if we were invaded by the US, our nation bombed and our government deposed, there would be no justification to attack the leader of the army which had invaded us?
Sounds like insanity to me. You can send a bomber over Falluja and carpet bomb soldiers and civillians indiscriminantly - and that is an act of war. However a targetted strike against the very leader of an army you are at war with is murder? :dizzy2:
If I can still read English, Soly, I think your last post puts you in complete agreement with mine. ~:grouphug:
Vladimir
05-26-2006, 18:53
It seems like a lot of people here aren't quite getting it. If war is immoral than targeting the leader of a country you're at war with is equally immoral. Those that say it would be morally justified for an aggrieved Iraqi to kill the PM are also saying that the war is morally justified.
Edit: Damn, page two!
So if we were invaded by the US, our nation bombed and our government deposed, there would be no justification to attack the leader of the army which had invaded us?
Idaho, I think you have to pick sides. Is the cause just? If it is, it may be morally justified to kill for it. If I were a soldier, I would not fight for a war I did not believe in. That is becau I do not think it would be morally just to kill for an unjust war.
Frankly, I don't even see the cause these insurgents are fighting for. It's like the final scene in Apocalypse Now: "You disapprove of my methods?" "I don't see any method". Here, I don't see any cause.
It is not to repel an invasion anymore. That's history; it's over. The US and the Brits are leaving - they've already retreated to their green zones and armoured vehicles.
Is it to overthrow a government backed by the majority Shias and their well-armed neighbour, Iran? Probably, who knows? But if it is, on a practical level, good luck to them - they're going to need it. But on a moral level, the outcome of their insurgency will only be prolonged bloodletting and a failed state (or three). And that is not a morally justified cause.
Tribesman
05-26-2006, 20:59
sounds like someone is still smarting over the total pounding Galloway gave the Republican led U.S. Senate
That would be...you?
and who thought DeNile was just a river in Africa:laugh4: :laugh4: :laugh4:
Firstly , can murder be justified?
Just call it regime change eh , wanted dead or alive .
If Blair , through his lies and actions is in any way responsible for the deaths of thousands then he deserves the same treatment as is advanced for Saddam or Bin-Laden .
Now for if it would be "morally justified" , that woud depend on your views on vengeance or the death penalty .
I notice that many of the posters objecting to the morality of killing Blair are very strong in the pro camp when it comes to vengeance or the death penalty .
Thats called hypocracy isn't it ?:coffeenews:
Mount Suribachi
05-26-2006, 21:33
sounds like someone is still smarting over the total pounding Galloway gave the Republican led U.S. Senate
Galloway is a cheap demagogue. His debating "style" is the same as Muhammed Ali - he simply shouts the opponent down with the number and volume of his words and throws in a few controversial statements to further throw his opponent off balance. Such as "you armed Saddam in the first place", which is complete rubbish, but it sounds great and gets the anti-war crowd all excited. I remember him getting a round of applause on the Wright Stuff for throwing that one out. Sadly no-one asked him to name just one weapons system the Americans supplied to Saddam Hussein, because he wouldn't be able to.
I loathed Galloway for his hateful and hypocritical views long before his appearance before the US Senate, and he showed the British public what a nasty piece of work he is on Celebrity Big Brother. I just feel sorry for all the muslims who voted for him thinking he somehow represented them. They have been used.
Tribesman
05-26-2006, 21:52
Sadly no-one asked him to name just one weapons system the Americans supplied to Saddam Hussein, because he wouldn't be able to.
Why ? isn't Galloway up to date with the weapons that America supplied Saddam with .
Or is it just that you are not up to date Suribachi ?
Ask the Marsh Arabs , hey Saddameven got a waiver on the cease fire conditions so he could use the American weapons to put down the rebellion .
Galloway is a cheap demagogue. His debating "style" is the same as Muhammed Ali
At least you are right there . Like he says , he approaches every confrontation just as though he was still a boxer , keep them reeling from the blows and don't allow them a chance to recover their guard .:boxing:
Marcellus
05-27-2006, 01:01
So if we were invaded by the US, our nation bombed and our government deposed, there would be no justification to attack the leader of the army which had invaded us?
Sounds like insanity to me. You can send a bomber over Falluja and carpet bomb soldiers and civillians indiscriminantly - and that is an act of war. However a targetted strike against the very leader of an army you are at war with is murder? :dizzy2:
Let's just remind ourselves of the question:
Would the assassination of, say, Tony Blair by a suicide bomber - if there were no other casualties - be justified as revenge for the war on Iraq?
Not in order to repel an invasion. For revenge. I don't believe that killing for revenge can be justified, so I completely disagree with Galloway here. That's just my opinion, of course.
Mount Suribachi
05-27-2006, 10:29
Sadly no-one asked him to name just one weapons system the Americans supplied to Saddam Hussein, because he wouldn't be able to.
Why ? isn't Galloway up to date with the weapons that America supplied Saddam with .
Or is it just that you are not up to date Suribachi ?
Ask the Marsh Arabs , hey Saddameven got a waiver on the cease fire conditions so he could use the American weapons to put down the rebellion .
I see you fail to mention these weapons America supposedly supplied Saddam with. Regarding the incident you refer to,I think you will find almost all the pro-war people on this board regard the failure of the Bush administration to support the rebellion in the south as a huge mistake. He encouraged them to revolt after the '91 war, then left them to be massacred. There was also an oversight in the ceasefire agreement that allowed the Iraqis to use their helicopter gunships.
Still waiting to find out what weapons systems America supplied Saddam with. 90% of Iraqs hardware came from Russia, 10% from France. The most America ever supplied Saddam with was just enough intelligence from their satellites to prolong the Iran-Iraq war, thus keeping Iran in check.
Tribesman
05-27-2006, 12:49
I see you fail to mention these weapons America supposedly supplied Saddam with. :laugh4: :laugh4: :laugh4:
supposedly ?????? get real
There was also an oversight in the ceasefire agreement that allowed the Iraqis to use their helicopter gunships.
Now which helicopter gunships would they be ? They wouldn't be the helicopter gunships that congress blocked the sale of , but then allowed the sale as long as they didn't get delivered with the TOW missiles included.
Now there wouldn't be a little problem with supplying cluster bombs to Saddam would there ? but then again the house did debate at length in '91how Saddam had American made Cluster bombs after the sale had been blocked , it appears that the Chilean front company wasn't much of a front in the end .
I suppose you are familiar with the 18 US companies named in the UNSCOM investigation for supplying Saddam with his Chemical Warfare requirement .
You may also be familiar with the investigations into the Loans and crdits Reagan and Bush gave saddam being used for weapons purchases , through an American arms dealer , (that lead to another Senate hearing):inquisitive:
But it seems that unfortunately you are not familiar at all with Saddams arms purchases are you .
So Suribachi , before you make silly statements about "supposed" arms supplied , it might be a good idea to learn a little something about them .
Mount Suribachi
05-28-2006, 12:07
Now which helicopter gunships would they be ?
You tell me? Cobras? Don't think so. Apaches? Get real. Name the helicopters - I'm not aware of any US helicopter gunships other than those two.
I suppose you are familiar with the 18 US companies named in the UNSCOM investigation for supplying Saddam with his Chemical Warfare requirement .
I work in the Pharmaceutical industry. My employers were inspected this year by UN Chemical Weapons inspectors - we get a visit every 5-10 years as we have the capacity to manufacter chemical weapons should we so wish. Do you have any idea of the kind of stuff on the "banned" list regarding chemical weapons? Its bog standard stuff like reactors (oooh!), crystallisers (ahhh!) and filter-dryers (eeeek!). Chemicals like Acetone & Toluene. I throw acetone round the lab like its water, we go through at least 20 tons of Toluene a day. Hell, we even use Phosgene, itself a chemical weapon, as part of a standard reaction. You can build yourself Chemical weapons using freely available, off-the-shelf equipment and raw materials. France & Germany were far bigger players in supplying Saddam with what he needed for his NBC program.
You may also be familiar with the investigations into the Loans and crdits Reagan and Bush gave saddam being used for weapons purchases , through an American arms dealer , (that lead to another Senate hearing)
So no American weapons then? And how did they compare to the enormous loans and credits Saudi Arabia and Kuwait gave Iraq to protect them from Iran?
Now there wouldn't be a little problem with supplying cluster bombs to Saddam would there ? but then again the house did debate at length in '91how Saddam had American made Cluster bombs after the sale had been blocked , it appears that the Chilean front company wasn't much of a front in the end .
I will admit to not being familiar with this one, but given your being sincerely wrong views on things like the helicopter Gunships, you'll forgive me if I require a little more convicing. Furthermore, there would be a compatability issue with the Iraqi AF's 700 odd Soviet tactical fighters.
But it seems that unfortunately you are not familiar at all with Saddams arms purchases are you .
So Suribachi , before you make silly statements about "supposed" arms supplied , it might be a good idea to learn a little something about them .
Oh, I am very familiar with it. All you have come up with is some Cluster Bombs that may or may not have been supplied by America. And this is from the VAST, enormous, military machine - the worlds 6th largest AF in 1991 - that Saddam assembled. The only weapons America may have supplied were some cluster bombs.
But I'll help you out - Iraqi Airways (government owned) had two Boeing 707s, six B727s, two B737s and four B747s!
So America hardly "armed" Saddam. Look, just bite the bullet and admit that France and Russia armed him.
Tribesman
05-28-2006, 12:27
You tell me? Cobras? Don't think so. Apaches? Get real. Name the helicopters - I'm not aware of any US helicopter gunships other than those two.
Check the inventory of armed US helicopters , you will find there are a lot more than 2 types , those supplied to Saddam were the Hughes model , of similar performance and capabilities to the German MBB and Anglo-French Gazelle .
Do you have any idea of the kind of stuff on the "banned" list regarding chemical weapons?
What you mean like fishing rods , pencil-erasers , ping-pong balls , badminton raquets , no , I have no idea what is on the list:laugh4: :laugh4: :laugh4:
France & Germany were far bigger players in supplying Saddam with what he needed for his NBC program.
Errr not quite , while Germany has 84 companies on the list , France has less than either Britain or America .
I will admit to not being familiar with this one, but given your being sincerely wrong views on things like the helicopter Gunships, you'll forgive me if I require a little more convicing.
Like I said , it is not very clever to write "alledgedly" or "supposedly" if you don't know facts about what you are challenging .....Furthermore, there would be a compatability issue with the Iraqi AF's 700 odd Soviet tactical fighters.
~;)
Oh, I am very familiar with it.
Well Suribachi , it appears that you are not familiar with the issue are you ?
So America hardly "armed" Saddam.
oh hardly armed him , thats a bit different from never supplied him with any weapons which was your initial claim .
Red Peasant
05-28-2006, 12:38
Galloway is a strange bloke, but I can agree with his basic premiss on this one. I would consider it eminently possible for a muslim to convince himself that it is morally justifiable to kill Tony Blair given the circumstances of the Iraq war and current religious and geo-political tensions.
This is not the same as saying that it is morally right.
However, maybe Georgie should sometimes be more discreet when he opens his gob, because he knows that the media will completely misrepresent what he is saying on such subjects. It's also a daft thing to say, because it might inadvertently encourage such an action.
Tribesman
05-29-2006, 00:48
Look, just bite the bullet
Hows the bullet tasting now Suri , have you a good dental plan ??
Since now you must have discovered the Hughes/Boeing arms supplies ( its quite easy without bothering with all the hearings in your government ,its in the air force inventory), would you like to explore the Bell ones ?
Now that is a little harder , as they were only supplied for agricultralchemical disbursement , so as you understand dual use capabilities ,how does a hardpoint for an agricltural spraying mechanism become a hardpoint for a rocket pod ?
Oh I forgot , only the Cobra and Apache are helicopter gunships :laugh4: :laugh4: :laugh4:
:book:
But on the bright side , due to the lightness of construction the cannons on the gunships have to be limited to 350 rounds/minute:skull:
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