Fionn, I never said that the posession or the assumed posession of WMD's was a basis for launching a war. I merely pointer out that that I feel that there is reasonable cause to believe that Iraq has them in one or more forms.
If Sadam would allow UN inspectors to truly inspect, the matter could be laid to rest once and for all. In my view, the fact that he has refused for years to allow inspections in any meaningful sense of the word indicates that he has something that he wants to hide from the world.
Maybe he collects My Little Pony figures and doesn't want anyone to find out because it would clash with his "tough guy" image.
Amos, I hate to disagree with you, but the American Army ubder George Washington used pretty much the same linear tactice as the British, Hollywood notwithstanding. Units like Marions rarely, if ever, met the enemy in open battle. Their clashes were more of the it-and-run variety, which, while debilitating in terms of security and the loss of supplies, were only in small part responsible for the Colonists ultimate victory.
If you look at the world situation at that time, the British Empire was having trouble all over the would and were overextended.
The linear tactics of the day were used right up through the Napoleanic Wars when weapons technology made small mobile units more effective and on into the American Civil War.
In fact, the early tactics in WWI were mostly linear in nature where troop movements were concerned until the true destructive power of the machine gun was finally realized by the Allied Commanders.
The Battle of the Somme comes to mind. Tens of thousands of casualties in the first HOUR alone as the men marched out of the trenches in parade-ground formation.

troll