Why couldn't we have bribed Saddam and the Baathists....

[Misunderestimator]

to leave the country and hold elections... something Jon Stewart hinted at while interviewing Tim Russert. I mean, really... I certainly would have preferred to have spent $200 billion on bribes instead of on weapons and troops and the added human cost. Am I crazy? :shrug:

I know it's a rhetorical question... and was never really a choice to the evil forces currently at the wheel of our democracy.

[catzies]

1. Because

it was personal. Remember * saying, "He tried to kill my daddy." This is all a mafia turf war, remember.

[FleshCartoon]

8. That, too.

For Bush, it was Daddy. For Cheney, it was oil and war profiteering.

I'm sure some graft has brushed Bush's palm, too, but Daddy being embarrassed was probably the instigation.

That's why he always wanted the answer to be "Iraq," even when it wasn't.

[FleshCartoon]

2. Then we wouldn't control the oil.

I don't know what they're going to do to control it now that Chalabi has been caught being a bad boy.

And don't tell me BushCo. didn't know he was working with Iran. They just had to go busting up into his house to make a good show because someone they didn't trust had found out about the deal--they were trying to do damage control.

Sigh. Before Bush gets out of office, I'm going to have a bigger tin foil helmet than anyone else in my family, and I come from a family of paranoid purists. Now, I've caught the fever. But this administration sort of inspires one to mistrust every move they make and even some they are yet to make, doesn't it?

[Stew225]

3. furthermore, it's certainly not the

Rambo, Chicken-Hawk way of doing things. Bring em on!

[mark11727]

4. If only it were that easy ...

BUSH: "Here's a billion dollars, and a nice island to live on. Hand us the keys, and go away."

SADDAM: "Hell, I was thinking of retiring anyway! Screw Uday, I'm outta here!"

Billions saved, not to mention lives and the goodwill of the rest of planet.

[Misunderestimator]

5. I know, I know... I had a fantasy moment. n/t

[Ganja Ninja]

6. Because the BFEE wanted it all.

They wanted to control the oil at the spigot so they and their Saudi friends could control the world market for oil. Judging from the current price for oil on the world market the plan is going well.

[seabeyond]

7. it could have been that easy

it was just talked on this board yesterday i believe, and i remember right prior to war there was a lot of aggressive energies trying to get them to stop momentum to war. that was shown either right before or right after bush went into country adn the people opposed to war was yelling about bush saying screw it, we are going to fight

saddam took the message to the rest of war in oct seeing build up, maybe later than oct, not sure, that he would step down. let him get family out and 2 billion, and he would have his people corroperate with bush

but bush being the cowboy macho male i wanna fight kinda dude in all his arrogance said huh uh./

even though it came out 48 hours prior to going into iraq saddam and two sons get out of town in 48 hours or we are coming in

thinking all knew they were coming in

[wtmusic]

9. Pride

Evil, foolish pride.

[Kazak]

10. Because, then they couldn't...

cow the globe into submission with their "shock and awe" campaign.