Then finally Frank the odds and sods in Part III

"the US does have a WMD arsenal, which, since the end of the Second World War they have threatened nobody with."

"You have never heard of the Cuban missile crisis? We nearly had WW III. – Frank Hamilton"

I remember it very well Frank. And if memory serves correctly wasn't it Soviet Russia that was doing the threatening by parking IRBM's with nuclear warheads off the coast of the USA?

"They (the USA) have not signed the nuclear proliferation treaty – Frank Hamilton"

Well Frank counter to your wildest fancies, I can state with absolute certainty that United States of America signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty on 1st July, 1968 and ratified the Treaty on 5th March, 1970. So by all means Frank dream on, or at least come up with a date when the US renounced the treaty – I take it that you can do that Frank?

"Russia and China on the other have always lagged behind, Russia has 50% more operational nuclear weapons than the US and both Russia and China still maintain for use massive quantities of chemical and biological weaponry. Can you explain why you didn't bring all this to our attention, or is this only one more "let's bash the USA" attempt."

"I don't know the source for this information but there is no reason to believe that it is true. – Frank Hamilton"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/list_of_states_with_nuclear_weapons

"I am unaware of any occasion in recent times when the USA has terrorised its own population, perhaps you could enlighten us."

"You might consider Blackwater and the National Guard's role in Katrina for one."

No, you might consider that people had been terrorised Frank, I wouldn't.

"The School of the Americas is far from being shut down. It has a new name now with the acronym WHIMSEC and is very active in supplying help to terrorists in Colombia, and other Central American countries as well as Afghanistan. – Frank Hamilton"

Actually its WHINSEC, not WHIMSEC
"The Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation (WHINSEC), located at Fort Benning in Columbus, Georgia, is the Defense Department's principal Spanish-language training facility for Latin American military and law-enforcement personnel (though some civilians attend as well). It is the successor to the School of the Americas (SOA), a facility established in 1946 and legally closed in 2001."

Now Frank says that it is – "very active in supplying help to terrorists" – well here's the make-up of student role for 2004 (latest published figures):

Military 633 (64%); Police / Law Enforcement 334 (34%); Civilian 18 (2%)

No terrorists mentioned Frank, how come?

Few more facts about WHINSEC for you Frank:
Section 911 of the 2001 National Defense Authorization Act (H.R. 5408) added a new section 2166 to Title 10, U.S. Code (the part of U.S. law that governs the military). The new section repealed the legal authorization for the old School of the Americas and made the following changes.
•        The Fort Benning facility was renamed the "Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation."
•        The renamed institute's official purpose is now "to provide professional education and training to eligible personnel of nations of the Western Hemisphere within the context of the democratic principles set forth in the Charter of the Organization of American States ... while fostering mutual knowledge, transparency, confidence, and cooperation among the participating nations and promoting democratic values, respect for human rights, and knowledge and understanding of United States customs and traditions."
•        Codifying an existing SOA policy, the new law requires that each student receive at least eight hours of instruction in "human rights, the rule of law, due process, civilian control of the military, and the role of the military in a democratic society."
•        The new law allowed Western Hemisphere civilians and police personnel to attend, and requires that the Secretary of State be consulted in the selection of students.
•        Courses must focus on leadership development, counter-drug operations, peace support operations, disaster relief, or "any other matter the Secretary [of Defense] deems appropriate."
•        The new law codified the old SOA's decade-old practice of inviting a "Board of Visitors" to review and evaluate "curriculum, instruction, physical equipment, fiscal affairs, and academic methods." A federal committee, the board must include the chairmen and ranking minority members of both houses' Armed Services Committees (or surrogates), the senior Army officer responsible for training (or a surrogate), one person chosen by the Secretary of State, the head of the U.S. Southern command (or a surrogate), and six people chosen by the Secretary of Defense ("including, to the extent practicable, persons from academia and the religious and human rights communities"). The board reviews the institute's curriculum to determine whether it complies with U.S. laws and doctrine, and whether it is consistent with U.S. policy goals toward Latin America and the Caribbean. Within sixty days of its annual meeting, the Board must submit a report to the Secretary of Defense describing its activities and its recommendations.
•        The law requires a detailed annual report on the institute's activities, which the Secretary of Defense, after consulting with the Secretary of State, must submit to Congress by March 15 of each year.

The sanctions placed on Iraq post signing of the Safwan cease-fire 3rd March 1991 and adoption of UNSC Resolution 687 3rd April, 1991 were the result of lack of Iraqi co-operation with regard to the cease-fire terms and non-compliance with obligations agreed to by Iraq. Frank, in the period you are referring to the many innocent civilians were horribly affected by the predations of their ruler Saddam Hussein who was not affected by the sanctions one jot. Now tell us Frank how many "Presidential Palaces" did he build during this period that could not be inspected by UNSCOM or the IAEA? What was all that fuss about the "Oil-For-Food" Programme? Tell us again just how effective those sanctions were Frank, illegal oil trading? 384 Rocket engines? The UN sanctions Frank were a joke, and that has been clearly proven.


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