Voice from the Commonwealth
Commentary, World Views and Occasional Rants from a small 'l' libertarian in Massachussetts

"If ye love wealth greater than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better than the animating contest for freedom, go home and leave us in peace. We seek not your council nor your arms. Crouch down and lick the hand that feeds you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen." - Samuel Adams
.

Sunday, September 08, 2002

The story of Saddam's mistress is surreal. I'm not sure how much I can sympathise for her. She went back repeatedly. I guess I can't really judge because I don;t know enough but, after Uday raped her daughter she should have done everything in her power to get her and her daughters out.

What really stooped me in this story is evidence of what I have said before.

She provides other insights into his character. He never reads books, she says, and despite his Islamic rhetoric, he drinks alcohol regularly. 'His goal is for his name to live for 1,000 years, as the new Arab hero, the second Saladin.'

This is why Saddam is is more dangerous than any other nation we face. The others are based on systems (Iran, North Korea and China) and are willing to take the long road. We can counter them or deterr them without having to necessarily fear a hot war. Saddam does not trust anyone to make and maintain his name for him. The only way his name will be remembered for a thousand years is to do something that will be so horrible it will stand as a benchmark for a thousand years. This is what drives him, every minute of every day. He is consumed with his legacy and he knows, despite the lies he feeds Iraq, that if he were to die tomorrow he legacy woul not live. To do that would require something terribly impressive. A nuclear strike on Israel or America would be one of the few things that could assure that legacy. He will not be appeased or diverted. To do so would leave him forgotten soon after his death.

< email | 9/08/2002 01:57:00 AM | link




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