[jimbob]

Primitive:

I'll think on your response.

Originally posted by phaet2112:

So they haven't found anything in 8 years of looking.

Why then the assumption they have the wmd?

Because the Iraqi govt has records of producing certain volumes of UN mandated illicit weapons (biological and chemical). But they have not provided records of destruction for much of the weaponry. For example, there is about 30 000 L of unaccounted for Anthrax somewhere (dead or alive) in Iraq.

Well, you can't just wave a magic wand and *poof* the 30 000 L of anthrax is gone! The Iraqi govt claims to have destoyed this unaccounted for stash, but also claim to have no records of the destruction. Could the records have just been misplaced? Maybe a little mix up? Oh, it was that silly administrator Ahmed, you know how messy his desk is, it must just have been misfiled.

For comparison... the British did a little experimentation with Anthrax on some Scottish Isles during WWI, and 40 years later the thing (and it's neighbours) was still "death island". They had to go up with in excess of 100 000 L of formaldehyde to clean it up (ie sterilize the island).

Now even if we give an incredible amount of credit to the minimal inhibitory concentration of formaldehyde vs anthrax spores, (and factor in things like the island was sprayed with less than 30 000 L of spores, but the spores were spread out across a huge surface area of soil) the Iraqi gov't would need atleast equal quantities of formaldehyde (or equivalent agent) to sterilize/destroy their stockpile(s).

Now an agency will have a pretty tough time of purchasing 10 to 30 000 L of formaldehyde (or equivalent disinfectant) and not leave a shred of a paper trail. There have to be letters request, of purchase, of transfer... there will be work orders and paycheques and duplicate and triplicate copies in governmental department after governmental department. Not to mention the biohazard suits used to keep the handlers alive (say 10 to 15 000 $US a pop.) specialized trucks, the original bioreactors, etc. That's a lot of dough and a lot of equipment to be "hidden down a hole" with no paper trail, let alone a no physical disposal site!!

P.S. And that's just the Anthrax, what about the chemical agents that are claimed to have been destroyed, but again with no paper trail?

[ March 27, 2003, 00:12: Message edited by: jimbob ]