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http://www.commondreams.org/views01/1022-08.htm
Published on Monday, October 22, 2001 on The ProgressiveIraq, Anthrax, and the Hawks
by Matthew Rothschild
It didn't take long for the hawks to seize on the anthrax scare as a justification for the United States to go bomb Iraq.
"By far the likeliest supplier is Saddam Hussein," The Wall Street Journal wrote in an editorial on Oct. 18.
James Woolsey, former CIA director, said almost the exact same thing in the Journal's adjacent guest column. After speculating about Iran's involvement, he said: "But by far the more likely candidate for involvement with al Qaeda is Iraq."
Richard Butler, the bellicose leader of U.N. inspections in Iraq in the late 1990s, took to the op-ed page of The New York Times the same day to insinuate that Iraq was behind the attacks: "If the scientific path leads to Iraq as the supporter of the anthrax used by the terrorist mailers, no one should be surprised."
Three things need to be noted about this "Let's Go Get Iraq" chant.
First, the hawks wanted to get Iraq even before any anthrax was delivered.
Second, the evidence against Iraq is not overwhelming.
Third, it makes no political sense for Iraq to be behind the anthrax attacks. .....
