I’m only posting this because it seems to have trustworthy information:
http://www.sbs.com.au/dateline/story/related/aid/147/id/600687/n/Iraq-s-Deadly-Legacy
I haven’t read all the “key reports” referred to in that link in detail, but so far “trustworthy” is not an adjective that jumps to mind in looking at them.
One is the “worse than Hiroshima” report by Busby et al (referenced earlier in this thread), which involved a questionnaire about birth defects in Fallujah, apparently none of which were actually verified by the authors. There’s one additional prior Busby paper, a general survey of Iraqi cancer cases which does not even mention depleted uranium weapons, a connect-the-dots report from a Syrian university (no possibility of political agenda there :dubious:) and an overview of potential teratogenicity of depleted uranium weapons which makes definitive statements like the following:
“If a comparable birth defects registry (1990–2000) were available for births in a section of northern Iraq not exposed to DU bombardment, it could help distinguish between war-induced and post-war exposures.”
Sounds a little less than a definitive indictment to me.
The reason Zanthor hasn’t posted in a few weeks in this thread is because he wanted to make REALLY sure he wasn’t going to screw this line up. Can’t you just imagine him, sitting hunched over his keyboard? Picture it: August 16th. A dimly lit computer room. Zanthor in the chair, a stack of dictionaries to his left, a Speak-and-Spell to his right. Biting his lower lip, he presses the buttons with a confidence born of nights of research. “Pee. Ess. Why. Cee. Eye.” and then he stops. And stares. And shakes his head once, before (in a fury of motion) hurling the damnable, mocking device across the room.
He’ll try again tomorrow. And he WILL succeed. Eventually.
Would it help if we ate the Muslims we killed?
Not during Ramadan, of course.
Regards,
Shodan
So…who won the haiku contest?
-XT
Me. 
Congratulations! Did you pick up your board game version of The Straight Dope, Pit Edition, Discussions with the Insane? Did you get the nice ceramic dog or matched set of candle sticks?
-XT
Basically. i gave up posting, same reason as when i joined Straight Dope many years ago,
I did not see much worth replying to. so did not
my apologies, sincerely, its just the way i see, saw it.
(see saw, now that’s funny ) We seem to see our military power as inviolate, but the world sees our power as a sick cruel joke we perpetrate against them… lol
They have the OIl, we hunger and thrist for it…
But I refrained from constantly posting, easily got bored with our perpetual we are innocent, we must destroy them all foreign ppl, hue and masses cry…
Deform all thier off spring with our le4gal, WMD!!!
Basically, i declined to join in the constant sheepish whitewash of our actions as we attempt, miserably, to dominate the world. not by our Ideology, Nor our religion, ( against theirs ) but the force of our Hi Tech WMD!!$$$$$$$$
$profit $dollar, US , see
Halliburton, Dick Chaney, Neo Cons, PNAC etc etc etc…
Am i trying to speak with Children?
seems all perfectly laid out clear to me, only we matter, the rest expendable..
am i seeing this wrong???
I think so, but i desire you to attempt to convince me otherwise…
wish you could…
Zanthor, nationalism is not unique to the United States, yet I don’t see you railing against other westernized countries for doing many of the same things the US does.
when i see one nations flag GLORIFIED as something to separate us from them,
make US/A 'special, each day, moment by moment, it is like a knife thro the heart.
makes me want to cry out for how we continue the US/A versus them illusion…
we lay them waste as if it does not matter, much at all…
they die, their countries are in Ruins…
but we are safe, really? from them??
you sure? of this?
Basically, we glorify what separates us from them, and you tell me its something that is acceptable? no problem?
breathe deep, suck it in, their pain matters not one iota?
here is the rub, we are responsible for what we do to them, how come we long ago abandoned the illusion what we did to them was for their good???
and how come many of us still believe we kill them for their own good?
lay their countries waste to rubble.
DU, White Phos, Agent Orange, Nukes Deployed against fellow Humans.
all for the purpose of ‘Good’???
We haven’t launched nukes against anyone in fallujah, moron.
hey, Their city we laid waste to deserves a capital F, its spelled Fallujah, i fixed it for you, show some respect…
it might help you show some understanding, compassion, dare i say it, mercy?
.
here is some of what we did to them.
http://search.icq.com/search/results.php?q=Fallujah&tb_ver=2.0.0.2&lng=en-US&ch_id=tb_ff
i was speaking of
H i r o s h i m a…
N a g a s a k i
simple letters,
too hard for you?
try to think, put the pieces of their shattered lives together…
if you can, are able to..
incredible damage that exists to this day, damage we refuse to acknowledge or pay compensation for…
deformed children, seemingly, of no concern to us…
the enduring damage we inflicted upon these foreign countries we lay waste to, is near not even worthy of mention, but to them, , for them…is unending.
what part of our quilt do yet refuse to, do you not yet accept?
agent orange, cluster bombs in Cambodian countryside, still maimimg their kids.
Napalm, what else?
our horrendous lists of damage inflicted is without limits???
at least those we are prepared to acknowledge, right?
Goddamn you’re a closed-minded fuckface. And what’s up with the continual usage of the lame, idiotic “Billie Jean, Rubie Lee” reference? Its too stupid and contrived for it to even feel like an insult.
We are pointing and laughing at you.
[QUOTE=Zanthor(translated)]
I was speaking of Hiroshima…Nagasaki simple letters, too hard for you?
[/QUOTE]
You were? Well, when you learn how to both speak and write in English, it might help a bit in getting your point across. I can’t decide if you are crazy or stupid…not that these have to be mutually exclusive conditions, mind. You are almost like a non-writing and possibly more droolingly nutball version of adhay, who strives purposefully to write whatever obscure bullshit comes into what passes for his mind in a mere stream of consciousness. He (and you) seem to do this because, well, you gots nuffin. If you can’t even make an anti-Iraqi war thread work for you in the Pit of the SDMB, you are the essence of Epic Fail.
But then, after 5 pages of 'dopers trying to get this through your idiots skull, I’m sure that even YOU have realized this by now…
Well, might be giving you too much credit for brain power there.
-XT
Hey, I found a photo of Zanthor’s mom.
Much is explained.
Bonus: I got to learn what a vexillologist was!
Hiroshima and Nagasaki were both calculated to minimize the overall loss of American lives (and Japanese) in wartime. They were to take out what was left of japans military industrial complex and eliminate the need for invasion. They’re now in one of the richest, happiest (Japanese, maybe not happy…) countries in the world – if fallujah is half as well off as either in 50 years, I’ll personally call Bush a genius, and run on the neocon ticket in the 2060s.
I’m proud you finally found the shift key, maybe now we can teach you how to use it properly.
People living in glass houses shouldn’t toss grammatical stones.
and my greatest joy always was and is standing against the ( mainstream ) tide, and your displeasure only convinces me my course is the right action..
Billie Jean, Rubie Lee, Billie Lee, Rubie Jean is a sick joke, i point out to you, because mainly, it amuses me, as some strange hippie ideology,
that man would live in peace with each other, and his woman.
each other, the whole planet, no more war…
its a simple love song, get it? yet?
Bahai faith, originated in Iran, yet persecuted in Iran…
Peace, World Peace…
Prob a concept to hard for you? to grasp? hunger for…?
Give Peace a chance… ( Lennon )
like, all these multi million $US weapons we have.. who to kill next?, infect, destroy, mutilate, deform, the most pressing concern?
lyrics go, we will have children,
of the Kingdom…
they wont be torn by war, nor will they Hate, or refuse to Love Justice…
the jibe was at ‘our friends’ Saudi, who sponsored the Bush Regimes…
who strangely think they have sole rights to the title, THE KINGDOM, here on Earth..
The Prophets speak of a different Kingdom…
not brought and sold by OIL, our Greed for it..
lust, avarice etc etc etc..
Just what do you understand..?
Quote…
Hiroshima and Nagasaki were both calculated to minimize the overall loss of American lives (and Japanese) in wartime. They were to take out what was left of japans military industrial complex and eliminate the need for invasion. They’re now in one of the richest, happiest (Japanese, maybe not happy…) countries in the world – if fallujah is half as well off as either in 50 years, I’ll personally call Bush a genius, and run on the neocon ticket in the 2060s.
end quote.
I think our use of Nukes against Japan was to discourage the Soviets who were preparing to invade Japan from the North.
The last thing we wanted was the Soviet occupation of Japan…
just a few hrs flying time from Vladivostok, or the Russian Military base Nth of there.
The firebombing of Tokyo caused way more deaths, BUT did not result in the endless continuing Genetic damage we inflicted upon them, like our use of Nukes did. for Generations…
Basically, we showed the Soviets, Do Not Mess with Us.
began the Cold War, against them…
is this not so?
The Thread is about the damage we inflict worldwide, by the use of our weapons… of WMD
address that might be a good idea???