> Would, could,maybe this maybe that - it's a modal puzzle from hell, which
> leaves me feeling that we should stick to the more obvious causal chains.
An
> uncle might kill a nephew: that's no argument for murdering members of the
> family indiscriminately. A slim but live possibility thus must be
considered
> less important than a real and grotesque course of action. Helping Saddam
> back on his feet in 92 and then applying sanctions, in my view, was
> completely unforgivable. And in my book, it becomes worse, not better, if
> after twelve years we decide it was all a mistake anyway and go invade.
Yes. And I don't think one can overlook the "unfinished business" angle as a possible motivation for the current intervention... recall W. talking about how Saddam tried to kill his daddy,
-- Luke