# I saw the prized possession of one of the most evil men alive get shredded on live tv **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 22, 2003, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-the-prized-possession-of-one-of-the-most-evil-men-alive-get-shredded-on-live-tv/163316 "2003-03-22T06:58:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2003, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-the-prized-possession-of-one-of-the-most-evil-men-alive-get-shredded-on-live-tv/163316/41 "2003-03-23T06:05:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by BlackKnight \* > \*\*I disagree. Destroying them very well might do quite a few people quite a bit of good. > > Keeping a building standing just because some people think it is pretty is not good strategy if there is a compelling military reason to destroy the building. > > Sure, in a best-case senario such art would not be destroyed. But we’re passed the point where best-case senarios can occur. If destroying the building helps end the war quicker, if it saves a few lives, then it is worth it. I like art. But I like people more. > > I’d wipe my ass with a Van Gogh if it helped take out a brutal dictator. \*\* And as I said, I understand if there is a compelling millitary necessity for the destruction. I will be saddened to see the building ruined, but I’m not unreasonable. I wouldn’t sacrifice lives to save a building. War destroys many treasures. (Right now, archaeologists are worried. Iraq has some incredibly rich sites, some of which aren’t excavated yet, and they’re concerned the war may destroy them.) It’s the nature of the beast, unavoidable in many cases, yet always sad. My point was that if there’s no concrete reason to destroy them, then razing them just to make a “statement” is wrong. Who knows what value they may hold for future generations? ---
**Author:** ![Improv\_Geek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b3f665/32.png) [@Improv\_Geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Improv_Geek)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2003, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-the-prized-possession-of-one-of-the-most-evil-men-alive-get-shredded-on-live-tv/163316/42 "2003-03-23T06:10:22Z")
Let’s keep in mind it is US and indeed International custom to provide financially for the country we liberate. I agree it is a tragedy for the art and such to be destroyed, but if it was built on the backs of iraqis the US will help fund the rebuilding of their city under the new regime and they will not only be rid of a merciless tyrant but will also have a clean and happy and shiny and beautiful city to live in. Built on the backs of the American greenback. ---
**Author:** ![casdave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@casdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casdave)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2003, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-the-prized-possession-of-one-of-the-most-evil-men-alive-get-shredded-on-live-tv/163316/43 "2003-03-23T06:44:11Z")
> [@](#): > > Built on the backs of the American greenback Rubbish! How about Bushbaby stating that the oil revenue generated by Iraqi oilfields will be held in trust and used to rebuild the Iraqi economy ? All the US greenback has done is pay for the means of destruction, it certainly will have nothing to do with buiding a shiny and beautiful city, which will be done with Iraq’s own wealth. We can all be generous in claiming someone elses resources are being used in our good name. ---
**Author:** ![BlackKnight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eb8c5e/32.png) [@BlackKnight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlackKnight)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2003, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-the-prized-possession-of-one-of-the-most-evil-men-alive-get-shredded-on-live-tv/163316/44 "2003-03-23T07:26:16Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lissa \* > \*\* > My point was that if there’s no concrete reason to destroy them, then razing them just to make a “statement” is wrong. Who knows what value they may hold for future generations? \*\* Ok. We agree. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![dwyr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwyr/32/363_2.png) [@dwyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dwyr)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2003, 7:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-the-prized-possession-of-one-of-the-most-evil-men-alive-get-shredded-on-live-tv/163316/45 "2003-03-23T07:31:48Z")
Didn’t the palace get bombed because of the [bunker complex](http://www.nypost.com/news/worldnews/70915.htm) beneath it? ---
**Author:** ![Doomtrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Doomtrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doomtrain)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2003, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-the-prized-possession-of-one-of-the-most-evil-men-alive-get-shredded-on-live-tv/163316/46 "2003-03-23T07:45:50Z")
That’s swank. If Saddam is a proper Evil Overlord, he’ll have a complicated escape mechanism that fails at the last minute. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2003, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-the-prized-possession-of-one-of-the-most-evil-men-alive-get-shredded-on-live-tv/163316/47 "2003-03-23T14:33:34Z")
> [@](#): > > On Frontline tonight they showed how sadam used to pass out pamphlets called “God’s mistakes, Jews, Persians & Flies” Forget about the murders, rapes, and terrorism. When the man started distributing Jack Chick comics he went too far. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2003, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-the-prized-possession-of-one-of-the-most-evil-men-alive-get-shredded-on-live-tv/163316/48 "2003-03-23T16:06:08Z")
According to NPR, the palace was built in the oldest section of the city and _everything_ in the area was flattened before the palace was erected. So Saddam wiped out some rather historic places himself in order to create his palace. Additionally, I wouldn’t be surprised if the liberated residents of Iraq didn’t raze the palace themselves, and do their best to absolutely ensure that no signs of it ever remain. The NPR reporter stated that the times he’d been in the compound his Iraqi handlers were jittery and on edge in the place because only _bad_ things happen to folks when they go in there. ---
**Author:** ![LooseTheMarmocets](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f0a364/32.png) [@LooseTheMarmocets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LooseTheMarmocets)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2003, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-the-prized-possession-of-one-of-the-most-evil-men-alive-get-shredded-on-live-tv/163316/49 "2003-03-23T17:37:31Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lissa \* > \*\*I, for one, hate to see the destruction of the palaces. I don’t care that Saddam is one of the most evil sons of bitches to ever crawl the face of the earth: they were beautiful buildings. They could have been used as museums, or put to use as government or office buildings after the war. The art and expensive furnishings could have been sold to ease the sufferings of the Iraqi people. > > I understand that in a war things sometimes need to be destroyed. I just hate to see beauty ruined. \*\* Lissa, Those palaces are not just beautiful buildings. They have military centers, food & supply storage, and bunkers underneath. Much like the rodent nest, it has to be taken out so the rat can’t go back there. It is a shame that Saddam saw fit to build himself 20 beautiful palaces while his people went hungry. I do agree that it is a shame to see beauty destroyed. That is one of the casualties of war. ---
**Author:** ![Trucido](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ea5d25/32.png) [@Trucido](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trucido)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2003, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-the-prized-possession-of-one-of-the-most-evil-men-alive-get-shredded-on-live-tv/163316/50 "2003-03-23T19:32:21Z")
I’ve heard that these palaces are actually gaudy tributes in execrable taste to the disgusting grandiosity of one very evil man. They’re not great works of art, and I think that calling for their protection is like dealing in Waffen SS memorabilia. Those who collect and admire it will hide their sick respect for a bloody tyrant behind some kind of aesthetic sense. These buildings have long been used to evade inspection regimes and to pander to a horrible man’s lust for the trappings of power. He has hundreds of them, and he’s bled the Iraqi people white with no compunction whatsoever to build them and other monuments to himself. War ennobles no one, eh? Yes, it’s a horrible thing and so is celebrating it. But you live and say these things because you are in a nation born of war, whether you are an American, a Canadian, or any European nationality. Millions have suffered and died throughout human history so that you have the luxury to sit here and denounce war, and that’s the darkest irony I know. Somehow, all the sacrifices they made, all that they strove and fought for is now worthless because you don’t approve of the means. Moral outrage is worse than useless, it’s ridiculous. ---
**Author:** ![js\_africanus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/87869e/32.png) [@js\_africanus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/js_africanus)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2003, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-the-prized-possession-of-one-of-the-most-evil-men-alive-get-shredded-on-live-tv/163316/51 "2003-03-23T20:03:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Trucido \* > **…I think that calling for their protection is like dealing in Waffen SS memorabilia. Those who collect and admire it will hide their sick respect for a bloody tyrant behind some kind of aesthetic sense.** IIRC, when asked why the uniforms in the movie “Starship Troopers” looked so nazi-esque, the director reluctantly admitted that the nazis had _style_. On a more serious note: as I mentioned before, I do tend to agree with **Lissa** on this sort of thing. E.g., the destruction of that ancient monastary in WWII was certainly a tragedy. And while age _does_ make a difference, IMO, that’s still no reason to excuse destroying beautiful under the aegis of “it’s new so it’s okay”. However, I tend to consider this to be a case where there is an exception to the rule. Symbols have real power and I would consder the symbolic destruction of his regime to be a valuable step to removing the terrorized populace from under his yoke. But we can disagree on that. (Plus there’s the bunker and all that.) ---
**Author:** ![clayton\_e](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c57346/32.png) [@clayton\_e](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clayton_e)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2003, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-the-prized-possession-of-one-of-the-most-evil-men-alive-get-shredded-on-live-tv/163316/52 "2003-03-23T22:20:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Tygr \* > \*\*No, not really. Did **djf750** kill 2,000,000 of his fellow citizens? 'Cause I didn’t read anything about it in the papers… \*\* Uh… that’s not a valid argument considering that **djf750** is not any part of the subject, only the one who brought it up. He was talking about their _people_ killing him and it being ironic that they would be brutal. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2003, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-the-prized-possession-of-one-of-the-most-evil-men-alive-get-shredded-on-live-tv/163316/53 "2003-03-23T22:41:57Z")
> [@](#): > > IIRC, when asked why the uniforms in the movie “Starship Troopers” looked so nazi-esque, the director reluctantly admitted that the nazis had style. There’s no denying it. Hell, their uniforms were [designed & manufactured by Hugo Boss](http://www.thethirdrail.com/hugo/news.htm). God alone knows why some part of our reptile brains equates fascism with eroticism, but don’t hold your breath waiting for _Elsie: She-Wolf of the RAF_. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-the-prized-possession-of-one-of-the-most-evil-men-alive-get-shredded-on-live-tv/163316.md?page=2)