Hi there Frankham,

On your response:

1. 1. UNSCOM/IAEA Inspections 1991 -1998

"Admittedly there was deception by Saddam in the inspections.
But this was uncovered admirably by the inspection teams and had a convincing effect on world opinion."

Uncovered admirably it might have been - but it was never countered. As to the convincing effect on world opinion - how many within this forum alone refuse to believe, or acknowledge, the contents of the UNSCOM Report of January 1999.

"There are very few countries in the world that have been in full compliance with UN Resolutions. US has violated them. Great Britain.
These are well-documented."

Very true - now apart from Iraq, how many of those countries have invaded two of their neighbours and used chemical/biological weapons against one of those countries and their own populations? I think that justifies marking out Iraq for closer consideration.

"The containment of Saddam is not shameful. It sends the message to the rest of the world that the other tyrants of the world will not be tolerated even though some have been and are still supported by the Bush Administration."

According to the requirements of existing UN Resolutions the containment of Iraq is nothing other than a shameful compromise. The message it sents to all like-minded tyrants is that it doesn't matter what the UN requires, if you can deceive and delay them, they will ultimately get tired of the exercise and you can carry-on as before. Saddam Hussein was clearly and deliberately challenging the authority of the UN. If what you contend is true then there would have been no need for statement from Dr. Mohamed Al-Baradei that IAEA regards the current nuclear programmes in Iran and North Korea a serious potential threat to world peace and non-proliferation. The fact that he has issued such a statement, however, supports my contention.