Looks like Saddam is alive

Saddam Hussein just made a statement on Iraqi TV. For the first time his statement made references to the results of the war so it is clearly quite recent even if it was not live.

He specifically mentioned the downing of the Apache helicopter by a “villager”. He also talked about the Coalition bypassing the Iraqi defenses around Baghdad.

The only question is whether it was really Saddam or one of his doubles. I don’t know if that qualifies as a Great Debate, but it seams most war threads are posted here.

Here’s the initial AP report.

Saddam Urges Iraqis to Strike Coalition

I don’t have any questions about the authenticity of this, but here’s my question. Saddam Hussein is apparently hugely wealthy. He has several large compounds referred to as palaces. So how come every video of his meetings looks like they were filmed in the meeting room of a small town Holiday Inn?

I would think because he is probably in a bunker or something similar. I guess he didn’t feel the need for opulent surroundings during a war.

Did you see pictures of some of his palaces before they were turned to rubble? taaa-a-a-a-acky.

The only thing this says to me, is that me maybe just maybe have been alive 11 days ago when the Apache went down… Thats it. This is not proof in my eyes that he is alive.

Why did he not reference the current date when he started his speech???

If he wanted the Iraqi people to believe he is still alive, he could have simply started his speech with " My fellow Iraqis, on this 4 day of March blah, bla blah, bla blah…"

Shouldn’t we be proving that he’s dead, rather than him having to prove he’s alive? He’s been asked to prove a lot of negatives recently…

Cheers.

If he wanted the Iraqi people to believe he is still alive, he could have simply started his speech with " My fellow Iraqis, on this 4 day of March blah, bla blah, bla blah…"

I guess if he wanted to prove he was alive a month ago. :wink:

Seriously, if he had said “this is the fourth of April…” people would still say he could have made several tapes mentioning future dates. To really prove it he would have to state an obvious new fact or hold up a copy of the New York Times. Since he’d like to keep the US guessing and is probably not anxious to look like a kidnap victim he might be reluctant to do either.

My two cents…

Its pretty much impossible. They aren’t likely to hand over his corpse, y’know. Time alone will tell.

…or not. His death will never be confirmed, and people will claim any dead body was only one of the doubles. The the ‘Boys from Brazil’ theorists will start cropping up.

I think we’re in for years of Saddam sightings.

Wow, Saddam has entered the realm of Elvis and Bigfoot.

Guess this is why the Bush Administration is now saying that finding Saddam is not needed for “victory” … just like Osama bin Laden, eh?

Ooh, then he can be the bogeyman that lets Ashcroft further eviscerate the Bill of Rights. Good thinking, rjung.

I wonder if Saddam ever read Asimov’s “Foundation” series, where the long dead Hari Seldon appears as a holographic projection during critical points in the future, with stunning prescience and understaning of the events of the particular era?

Could it be one of his “doubles?”

(Does he really have doubles? That’s outrageous!)

That’s easy. All you have to do is predict everything and have helpful disciples choose the right tape to play.

There was a good puzzler on Car Talk recently on the same theme: you get 8 letters predicting (correctly) the outcomes of 8 sporting events. Then a letter offering to sell you the 9th for $1000. Don’t bite! They just started with 128 letters to different people…

That’s going to be difficult; the paperboy surrendered.

Does anybody else think Saddam looks a lot like Walter Matteau?

Herman. That’s funny, he sounds a lot like Watler too. I never thought of that until now though…