I'm hearing this term a lot from The White House lately, and don't like this one bit. I can't wrap my head around this idea.

Couldn't this rationale be used to justify anything? How about a pre-emptive search of my property because i "might" be dealing drugs, a "pre-emptive" search of hard drive for "possibly collecting child porn" or perhaps a pre-emptive detainment of Mexican citizens because they MIGHT try and illegally immigrate? Maybe I'll have pre-emptive heart surgery because I might have a heart attack...?

What's stopping us from waging war on anyone when we attack them based on what they MAY do? Any of us MAY commit a crime or MAY break the speed limit.

Invading Iraq is a bad idea. Maybe W.'s dad is putting him up to it to take care of that unfinished business; and if we ARE going to do it, how smart is it to talk about for a year and let them prepare what they'll do to retaliate?

It's a way to justify attacking someone we don't like without a true reason.We tried to tie them into Al Queda..But the story didn't stick so know we do preventive maintanence.It's cool...we just changing the rules.Like we've always done...nuttin new.I would like to add some lyrics from TTD."Old men's cigars puff up the wars to protect their fuckups again.Young men must die to keep the old ones alive and to prove they're studs once again".
[This message was edited Mon Aug 26 7:18:32 PDT 2002 by theC]

what is it about this that makes me wanna listen to George Carlin ? Oh yeah How about this whole truth be known Vibe ...
Yeah well like we didn't smell old George W tryin to pull up his popularity polls in time for the big anaversery !
Hey yeah and in memory of all this we're gonna have a fire works show all over the desert ... cuz we feel like it and it will make it seem like I got some balls.
Whoops can I still say balls here ?

Zandi said:

i'm gladyou said it, because now i don't have to. he-he-heee!!!

uh...so its NOT all of the actors quitting before the new fall televison season?

All democratic countries have aggreed to follow the rules of the famous "pax westfalica" from the 1700s. This agreement states that a country will only go to war in self defense.
America now wants to break that rule. America now acts like Nazi-Germany who said :"We gonna kill the jews before they destroy us!" Of course the method is different, but the result is the same. Its a very dangerous step, because if America really takes it that will mean in the future anybody will attack anybody for any reason just pointing at america saying "they did just that". I dont wanna sound like a revisionist, I am not, but this is beginning to scare me.
Saddam Hussein is a bad mofo for his own people. a brutal dictator. but, as sad as it is, he is the only point of stability in the middle east. he keeps that region balanced. america wants to take him out, but they have no fucking clue what to do with the iraq afterwords.
they say they wanna fight him because he is bad for his people. well, it wouldnt be the first time that the US kill one dictator to install another one who is not better for the people...

There are more "brutal dictators" around other than Sadaam, and a long list of countries with less than stellar reputations regarding human rights and the treatment of their own citizens - but they don't have a whole lot of oil...

China doesn't have oil, so I guess running over their citzens with tanks is excusable from the US view.

Soulpower hit it in the head. Do we really want to set this precedent?

Zandi said:

(Ian rustles through 400 pages of Org Forum rules...)

Yes, I believe "balls" is acceptable. Carry on.

rdhull said:

FOCROFLMDAO!!!

As much as i think the White House and the US for that matter have no legitimate reason for invading Iraq, i'm hoping the Bush just goes out and attacks anyway[edit: he's going to do it regardless...military strikes mean votes regretfully, and the November elections are right around the corner].
The whole world has made it very clear they disapprove of our stance on the issue.

We bully enough countries into approving our self serving policies-we could lose a few 'yes' friends.

Unfortunately Americans, in general, have about as much say on the issue as someone from Swahili. Add to that, no one seems to be outraged by Bush's stance, they 'advise against it'. This country's decision making process has been taken hostage by the military, and no one seems to give a flying fuck.

And even worse, Democrats are as bad as Republicans when it comes to standing up to the true bullshit.
Sure, give them environmental changes(translation: throw the quasi-liberals a bone to shut em up)-and god knows we should be protecting animals from shampoo testing when we're busy killing eachother over crack: raise taxes to boost the economy: and build enough bike trails and the Dem's curl up in a ball.
[This message was edited Mon Aug 26 12:41:58 PDT 2002 by mrchristian]