No link between Iraq and Al Quaeda? Oops?

[Phokus]

http://www.upi.com/view.cfm?StoryID=20021020-092811-8185r

PRAGUE, Czech Republic, Oct. 20 (UPI) -- Czech intelligence officials have knocked down one of the few clear links between al Qaida terrorists and the Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein, UPI has learned.

Senior Czech intelligence officials have told their American counterparts that they now have "no confidence" in their earlier report of direct meetings in Prague between Mohammed Atta, leader of the Sept. 11 hijackers and an Iraqi diplomat stationed in Prague who has since been expelled for "activities inconsistent with his diplomatic status."

"Quite simply, we think the source for this story may have invented the meeting that he reported. We can find no corroborative evidence for the meeting and the source has real credibility problems " a high-ranking source close to Czech intelligence told UPI Sunday.

The initial report of the meeting in June 2000 claimed that Atta had met Ahmad al-Ani, an Iraqi intelligence official based in Prague under diplomatic cover, whose movements were being routinely monitored by BIS, the Czech intelligence service. The report also suggested that the Iraqi was probably the source of $100,000 that Atta suddenly obtained to finance the U.S. leg of the terror mission.

The report went on to claim that Atta returned to Prague on April 9 last year on a three-day mission to see al-Ani once more, just two weeks before the majority of the hijack team left Saudi Arabia for the United States. The report was then publicly confirmed by Czech Interior Minister Stanislas Gross, on the basis of the initial assessment of the BIS.

The nearest to a smoking gun connecting Iraq to al Qaida, the Czech report was taken very seriously in Washington, in the face of growing skepticism at the Central Intelligence Agency.

Also, here's a great article by a CONSERVATIVE who believes a preemptive war is wrong:

http://www.amconmag.com/10_21/iraq.html

 

[shiner]

Ok...let's wait to take out Saddam then....I'm sure he won't be able to kill more than a few thousand people before everyone gets all bent out of shape and then starts screaming "Why didn't the United States do anything to stop him?"

I gotta go for now......I have a meeting with Neville Chamberlin. I need some elbow room and there's a piece of Austria I've had my eye on that I'm sure he will let me have for a bargain.....

 

[klah]

Well they have replaced that with THIS.

 

[Phokus]

Originally posted by: shinerburke
Ok...let's wait to take out Saddam then....I'm sure he won't be able to kill more than a few thousand people before everyone gets all bent out of shape and then starts screaming "Why didn't the United States do anything to stop him?"

I gotta go for now......I have a meeting with Neville Chamberlin. I need some elbow room and there's a piece of Austria I've had my eye on that I'm sure he will let me have for a bargain.....

Ladies and gentlement, this is an exemplary model for debate. Rather than using concrete evidence or logic, use "what ifs?".

When saddam somehow sneaks nukes into Cuba past our satellites, radar and spies, give me a ring. [/sarcasm]

 

[shiner]

Originally posted by: klah
Well they have replaced that with THIS.

There was an Oklahoma Congressman saying this since right after the OKC bombing first happend. Of course everyone laughed him off....

 

[Phokus]

Originally posted by: klah
Well they have replaced that with THIS.

Purely speculative at this point (as was the meeting between Iraqi intelligence goon and the al quaeda goon)

 

[StageLeft]

For me personally Bush's efforts to link al queda with iraq are the greatest negative in his effort. CIA doesn't even say there i a definite connection. I'm sorry but I just think he's using propaganda and half-truths to convince the american people to go after saddamn. It seems to me that there may very well be a reason to go after iraq regardless of this link, but this phoney effort of his undermines the legitimacy of everything else he says. There is no real link. Nobody outside of the bush administration thinks there is. Who to believe - bush or the cia?

 

[shiner]

Originally posted by: Phokus

Originally posted by: shinerburke
Ok...let's wait to take out Saddam then....I'm sure he won't be able to kill more than a few thousand people before everyone gets all bent out of shape and then starts screaming "Why didn't the United States do anything to stop him?"

I gotta go for now......I have a meeting with Neville Chamberlin. I need some elbow room and there's a piece of Austria I've had my eye on that I'm sure he will let me have for a bargain.....

Ladies and gentlement, this is an exemplary model for debate. Rather than using concrete evidence or logic, use "what ifs?".

When saddam somehow sneaks nukes into Cuba past our satellites, radar and spies, give me a ring. [/sarcasm]

Ladies and gentleman this is an exemplary model of someone with their head so far up their ass they can't see daylight.

Threats can come from anywhere, anytime. Why wait until something is just off our shores to react?

 

[Einz]

Originally posted by: Skoorb
For me personally Bush's efforts to link al queda with iraq are the greatest negative in his effort. CIA doesn't even say there i a definite connection. I'm sorry but I just think he's using propaganda and half-truths to convince the american people to go after saddamn. It seems to me that there may very well be a reason to go after iraq regardless of this link, but this phoney effort of his undermines the legitimacy of everything else he says. There is no real link. Nobody outside of the bush administration thinks there is. Who to believe - bush or the cia?

I'll agree with you on that one. There was a funny political cartoon in the MIT Tech the other day. It had Bush chasing after Osama on foot, and I guess Osama was too fast for Bush, so he got away. Bush stood in the next frame, scratching his head and looking dumbfounded. The last frame has Bush chasing after Saddam. Everyone in my Calculus class got a good laugh out of it.

 

[Phokus]

Originally posted by: shinerburke

Originally posted by: Phokus

Originally posted by: shinerburke
Ok...let's wait to take out Saddam then....I'm sure he won't be able to kill more than a few thousand people before everyone gets all bent out of shape and then starts screaming "Why didn't the United States do anything to stop him?"

I gotta go for now......I have a meeting with Neville Chamberlin. I need some elbow room and there's a piece of Austria I've had my eye on that I'm sure he will let me have for a bargain.....

Ladies and gentlement, this is an exemplary model for debate. Rather than using concrete evidence or logic, use "what ifs?".

When saddam somehow sneaks nukes into Cuba past our satellites, radar and spies, give me a ring. [/sarcasm]

Ladies and gentleman this is an exemplary model of someone with their head so far up their ass they can't see daylight.

Threats can come from anywhere, anytime. Why wait until something is just off our shores to react?

And this, folks, is why people like shinerburke shouldn't enter debates without knowing what the hell they're talking about. Lets see, North Korea has put bush in a bind. Do you propose we nuke them as well? Oh damn, i'm sure a few other countries have nukes as well, where's the litmus test for finding out if they're threats with those nukes? Oh wait, they ALL could potentially attack us! I'm sure this has been debated over and over again, but Saddam, despite what the media trying to convince you that saddam is the next hitler (http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=29357 for more information), is not a religious fanatic who is willing to give up his life at any cost. What is he going to do, attack israel killing a few hundred or thousand and risk turning Iraq into a country of dust from a country of rubble?

 

[Czar]

Originally posted by: shinerburke
Ladies and gentleman this is an exemplary model of someone with their head so far up their ass they can't see daylight.

Threats can come from anywhere, anytime. Why wait until something is just off our shores to react?

tell me, whats your list of countries that should be attacked because sometime in the future they might be a threat to the US?

 

[shiner]

Originally posted by: Phokus

Originally posted by: shinerburke

Originally posted by: Phokus

Originally posted by: shinerburke
Ok...let's wait to take out Saddam then....I'm sure he won't be able to kill more than a few thousand people before everyone gets all bent out of shape and then starts screaming "Why didn't the United States do anything to stop him?"

I gotta go for now......I have a meeting with Neville Chamberlin. I need some elbow room and there's a piece of Austria I've had my eye on that I'm sure he will let me have for a bargain.....

Ladies and gentlement, this is an exemplary model for debate. Rather than using concrete evidence or logic, use "what ifs?".

When saddam somehow sneaks nukes into Cuba past our satellites, radar and spies, give me a ring. [/sarcasm]

Ladies and gentleman this is an exemplary model of someone with their head so far up their ass they can't see daylight.

Threats can come from anywhere, anytime. Why wait until something is just off our shores to react?

And this, folks, is why people like shinerburke shouldn't enter debates without knowing what the hell they're talking about. Lets see, North Korea has put bush in a bind. Do you propose we nuke them as well? Oh damn, i'm sure a few other countries have nukes as well, where's the litmus test for finding out if they're threats with those nukes? Oh wait, they ALL could potentially attack us! I'm sure this has been debated over and over again, but Saddam, despite what the media trying to convince you that saddam is the next hitler (http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=29357 for more information), is not a religious fanatic who is willing to give up his life at any cost. What is he going to do, attack israel killing a few hundred or thousand and risk turning Iraq into a country of dust from a country of rubble?

I don't' know what the hell I'm talking about? Ok...if you say so. Funny how anyone that disagrees with you is obviously a fool. Forgive me oh great and wise one. I should have known better than to argue with someone from Massachusetts who has probably voted for that drunken bloated waste of flesh Ted Kennedy every chance he gets. Of course I shouldn't bring that up here. That's a whole different debate and we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.

Is North Korea a threat? Ummm...yeah. You see there was this little thing called the Korean War where the North invaded the South. I'm sure you'll find some references to it in a history book. The North is still a threat and is controlled by wackos that would rather let their people starve than admit their form of government is flawed and give it up. They are very dangerous people and should be dealt with as such. Hopefully it won't take another Korean War to oust them but it needs to be done.

As for Saddam not being dangerous? Are you blind, deaf, stupid, or just clueless? Among other things Saddam has said he will attack Israel if the U.S. attacks him. He did it in the past you know. Remember all the Scuds falling from the skies over Israel?

 

[Phokus]

Originally posted by: Czar

Originally posted by: shinerburke
Ladies and gentleman this is an exemplary model of someone with their head so far up their ass they can't see daylight.

Threats can come from anywhere, anytime. Why wait until something is just off our shores to react?

tell me, whats your list of countries that should be attacked because sometime in the future they might be a threat to the US?

That's what i'd like to know. If he says "the axis of evil", i'm going to laugh my ass off.

 

[shiner]

Originally posted by: Czar

Originally posted by: shinerburke
Ladies and gentleman this is an exemplary model of someone with their head so far up their ass they can't see daylight.

Threats can come from anywhere, anytime. Why wait until something is just off our shores to react?

tell me, whats your list of countries that should be attacked because sometime in the future they might be a threat to the US?

Iraq
Iran
North Korea
Sudan
Syria
Parts of Pakistan
Parts of Indonesia
Anyone that harbors terrorists or actively supports terrorism
and just for kicks....Iceland

 

[Phokus]

I don't' know what the hell I'm talking about? Ok...if you say so. Funny how anyone that disagrees with you is obviously a fool. Forgive me oh great a wise one.

Is North Korea a threat? Ummm...yeah. You see there was this little thing called the Korean War where the North invaded the South. I'm sure you'll find some references to it in a history book. The North is still a threat and is controlled by wackos that would rather let their people starve than admit their form of government is flawed and give it up. They are very dangerous people and should be dealt with as such. Hopefully it won't take another Korean War to oust them but it needs to be done.

As for Saddam not being dangerous? Are you blind, deaf, stupid, or just clueless? Among other things Saddam has said he will attack Israel if the U.S. attacks him. He did it in the past you know. Remember all the Scuds falling from the skies over Israel?

Lets see, Libertarians, Liberals, and Old School conservatives disagree with you yahoos that we should preemptively (note this does NOT mean under all circumstances that we don't attack them) attack iraq. Hell, not all republican voters are united on attacking them. And good, so israel will be safe if the US doesn't attack iraq. Thank you for strengthening my argument. And you know what? Israel can fend for itself:

"Peace, commerce, and honest friendship, with all nations -- entangling alliances with none." - Thomas Jefferson

Maybe you should set aside your bloodthirsty rage and heed those words. Having alliances has gotten us into more trouble than its worth. Write to your congressman that we should attack North Korea as well. Obviously, what happened decades ago with south korea is incredibly relevant to the United States TODAY. See how much the world hates the US even more if we attack. See how much it strengthens the resolve of terrorists. You, my friend, are a weak jingoist of a debater.

 

[UltraQuiet]

Shiner-- just try to ignore czar and jokus. Their myopic view of the world is strictly limited to the birds eye view they have of the last four inches of their own large intestines.

Afterall anyone with any sense should realize that we shouldn't do anything about Iraq until Saddam has a nuke he can threaten his neighbors with(Kuwait? Iraq?). I mean, afterall, it will be much easier to disarm him after he has fully developed a nuke.

Inspections will be done. If Saddam doesn't cooperate he will get bombed. Lather-Rinse-Repeat. ad nauseum.

 

[Phokus]

Iraq
Iran
North Korea
Sudan
Syria
Parts of Pakistan
Parts of Indonesia
Anyone that harbors terrorists or actively supports terrorism
and just for kicks....Iceland

You know, you're almost as fanatical as those muslims that you hate. Bleh, i'm out to lunch, BBL.

 

[shiner]

You're right.....Israel can fend for itself and that's exactly what Hussein is counting on. He attacks Israel, Israel responds, the Arab nations get pissed and come after Israel, two weeks later the whole region is even more of a wasteland and Israel is now 3000% larger than it used to be.

Now back to the original point about Hussein needing to go. Why is it that you don't see him as a threat? He has supported terrorism against the U.S. in the past, he most likely continues to do so. He has ignored the terms he agreed to in order to stop the ass beating of Desert Storm. He has continued to develop his WMB, he tortures his own people, crushes and kills anyone that opposes him. He still has ambitions to control Kuwait and still insists it is an Iraqi province and is a menace to the whole region. Is he the worst guy in the history of the world? Probably not since we have had Hitler, Pol Pot, Stalin, Bryan Adams(damn you Canada), etc, etc, etc.... but he is still a bad guy and needs to go. Playing the waiting game that you seem to endorse is dangerous and has proven time and again to be far more costly than taking action in the first place.

Is the Korean War still relevant? Why don't you ask the people in the North what they think of their government? Oh wait, they can't answer or they would be killed. How about asking the people of South Korea if they would like to be under the control of the North? Better yet how about asking someone like my Father who was in the Korean War what he thinks? Yes it's still relevant and as long as the madmen running the North are still there it will continue to be so. Then again I'm sure they were just trying to develop nuclear weapons and missiles capable of hitting the South and Japan just so that they could get rid of that pesky roach problem so we really don't have anything to worry about.

 

[Czar]

Originally posted by: shinerburke

Originally posted by: Czar

Originally posted by: shinerburke
Ladies and gentleman this is an exemplary model of someone with their head so far up their ass they can't see daylight.

Threats can come from anywhere, anytime. Why wait until something is just off our shores to react?

tell me, whats your list of countries that should be attacked because sometime in the future they might be a threat to the US?

Iraq
Iran
North Korea
Sudan
Syria
Parts of Pakistan
Parts of Indonesia
Anyone that harbors terrorists or actively supports terrorism
and just for kicks....Iceland

where would it end?

 

[Moonbeam]

Look, I don't know about you guys, but like shinerburke, I'm a coward too. Why should I, a spoiled child of the greatest wealth producing nation in the world, who has lived in the lap of relative luxury and ease all my life, have to have, all of a sudden, my peaceful repose interrupted by the thought that somebody could blow me up at any second. It's just not fair. I'm not used to that. I demand that somebody puts an end to my aggravation. Somebody is shooting people in DC and the news is on it 24/7. I?m so confused. I'm scared. Whoever is responsible must die. I want everybody that ruffles my precious feathers killed. Make up the evidence if you have to. I don't care how many of them die so I can go back to sleep, and I don't care how many of our own young boys die either, because I won't be one of them. Just make it all stop right this minute. I am an American. I was born great. I have a right. Nobody can make me experience even a twinge of anxiety and live. I will kill you all. I mean I will insist that somebody else kill you all. You are all evil. Where is my Mommy. Mommy, Mommy, they are picking on me. Punish them. Punish them good!

 

[shiner]

Originally posted by: Czar

Originally posted by: shinerburke

Originally posted by: Czar

Originally posted by: shinerburke
Ladies and gentleman this is an exemplary model of someone with their head so far up their ass they can't see daylight.

Threats can come from anywhere, anytime. Why wait until something is just off our shores to react?

tell me, whats your list of countries that should be attacked because sometime in the future they might be a threat to the US?

Iraq
Iran
North Korea
Sudan
Syria
Parts of Pakistan
Parts of Indonesia
Anyone that harbors terrorists or actively supports terrorism
and just for kicks....Iceland

where would it end?

When all the rogue states that support terrorists are gone. Sure there will always be terrorists but we can make it damn hard for them to find a place to live and train. Taking out the states that support them is the way to do it. Countries will then think twice before they let that kind of crap take place within their borders.

 

[StageLeft]

Originally posted by: Moonbeam
Look, I don't know about you guys, but like shinerburke, I'm a coward too. Why should I, a spoiled child of the greatest wealth producing nation in the world, who has lived in the lap of relative luxury and ease all my life, have to have, all of a sudden, my peaceful repose interrupted by the thought that somebody could blow me up at any second. It's just not fair. I'm not used to that. I demand that somebody puts an end to my aggravation. Somebody is shooting people in DC and the news is on it 24/7. I?m so confused. I'm scared. Whoever is responsible must die. I want everybody that ruffles my precious feathers killed. Make up the evidence if you have to. I don't care how many of them die so I can go back to sleep, and I don't care how many of our own young boys die either, because I won't be one of them. Just make it all stop right this minute. I am an American. I was born great. I have a right. Nobody can make me experience even a twinge of anxiety and live. I will kill you all. I mean I will insist that somebody else kill you all. You are all evil. Where is my Mommy. Mommy, Mommy, they are picking on me. Punish them. Punish them good!

So should we attack Iraq?

 

[shiner]

Originally posted by: Moonbeam
Look, I don't know about you guys, but like shinerburke, I'm a coward too. Why should I, a spoiled child of the greatest wealth producing nation in the world, who has lived in the lap of relative luxury and ease all my life, have to have, all of a sudden, my peaceful repose interrupted by the thought that somebody could blow me up at any second. It's just not fair. I'm not used to that. I demand that somebody puts an end to my aggravation. Somebody is shooting people in DC and the news is on it 24/7. I?m so confused. I'm scared. Whoever is responsible must die. I want everybody that ruffles my precious feathers killed. Make up the evidence if you have to. I don't care how many of them die so I can go back to sleep, and I don't care how many of our own young boys die either, because I won't be one of them. Just make it all stop right this minute. I am an American. I was born great. I have a right. Nobody can make me experience even a twinge of anxiety and live. I will kill you all. I mean I will insist that somebody else kill you all. You are all evil. Where is my Mommy. Mommy, Mommy, they are picking on me. Punish them. Punish them good!

How old are you Moonie? Do you remember having to practice ducking and covering in school in case of a nuclear attack? I did so I'm used to the threat of imminent attack. You can call me a coward if you want but I'll take that accusation about as serious as I do a Carrot Top movie.

 

[HappyPuppy]

Originally posted by: shinerburke

Originally posted by: Moonbeam
Look, I don't know about you guys, but like shinerburke, I'm a coward too. Why should I, a spoiled child of the greatest wealth producing nation in the world, who has lived in the lap of relative luxury and ease all my life, have to have, all of a sudden, my peaceful repose interrupted by the thought that somebody could blow me up at any second. It's just not fair. I'm not used to that. I demand that somebody puts an end to my aggravation. Somebody is shooting people in DC and the news is on it 24/7. I?m so confused. I'm scared. Whoever is responsible must die. I want everybody that ruffles my precious feathers killed. Make up the evidence if you have to. I don't care how many of them die so I can go back to sleep, and I don't care how many of our own young boys die either, because I won't be one of them. Just make it all stop right this minute. I am an American. I was born great. I have a right. Nobody can make me experience even a twinge of anxiety and live. I will kill you all. I mean I will insist that somebody else kill you all. You are all evil. Where is my Mommy. Mommy, Mommy, they are picking on me. Punish them. Punish them good!

How old are you Moonie? Do you remember having to practice ducking and covering in school in case of a nuclear attack? I did so I'm used to the threat of imminent attack. You can call me a coward if you want but I'll take that accusation about as serious as I do a Carrot Top movie.

Yep, in the '50s and 60's duck and cover training was a weekly exercise at school due to the very real threat of imminent nuclear attack.

 

[Lucky]

Originally posted by: Phokus

Originally posted by: klah
Well they have replaced that with THIS.

Purely speculative at this point (as was the meeting between Iraqi intelligence goon and the al quaeda goon)

as is what this anonymous "high-level" official is saying.