[QuarianRex]

This certainly is an interesting thread. And I have some thoughts on some of what has been said.

SamuraiProgrammer:

"Has he publicly advocated such actions? Yes.
Should he pay for those statements? Yes."

Are you serious? Do you really believe that a foriegn dictator saying that he hopes all americans get anthrax is a justification for war? So much for free speach.

"...they could find ways to leave. ...I believe that people could get out if they really wanted to. ...They have choices and are not exercising them."

Leaving ones home is usually not a viable option. Most people from the middle east (hell, even europe, asia, africa, etc.) have strong ties to the land of their birth. Ties that are deeper than social, economic, or even religious. This is something that people growing up in immigrant countries don't usually understand. Also, where would they go? People without a home usually aren't treated very well in the middle east, just look at the palestinians (and I'm not talking about their dealings with Isreal either).

It sounds almost as if you are trying to justify civilian deaths. Remember too that governments, even democracies, don't have a very good track record of listening to their populace. Did the multitude of hippies really cause viet nam to end any quicker than it otherwise would have? Probably not.

Imperator Fyron:

"The difference between the US having atomic weapons and other nations having them (such as Pakistan, India, Iraq, Iran, Israel, Palestine, etc.) is that the US will not use them nowadays, but those other nations will not hesitate to use them on their hated neighbors."

This is the popular preconception. People (especially americans) tend to think that the only thing keeping the world from tearing itself apart is the threat of the US retaliating with the big bad bomb. This is a delusion. If a nuke went off in downtown Calcutta the states would Not immediately launch ICBM's at pakistan. It is not fear of the US that prevents nuclear war, it is fear of nuclear war itself, an instinct for survival.

"This is why the US tries to prevent other nations from developing them. There is no good reason for them to develop them."

This is a foolish argument that goes against human nature. No one voluntarily allows another to maintain power over them. No matter how benign the wielder of that power may seem they do not have your best interests in mind, they have their own. That means that they cannot be fully trusted. When you see someone conspicuously waving around a baseball bat you always feel safer if you have one yourself.

Also realize that this potential war will not be a 'righteous' one. This will not be a defense against a possible world conqueror. If (when) it happens it will be barely justifiable and will most likely not be an extremely proud moment in history.

Remember how this all started? Osamma bin Ladden? Where is he now, is he caught? Who cares? He was a convenient excuse to renew a fifteen year old grudge match. And it seems as if the primary goal here is to pick a fight. And it just might succeed.

On a side note, I recently saw some research that was kind of interesting. It seems that wars tend to spring up every ten to fifteen years, correlating to shifts in the earths geo-magnetic field. It seems like the planet likes us getting a little rowdy every decade or so. It looks like we're due.