Reply #27: I think Conyers is missing the bigger point

[SnowGoose]

Yea, ok, the US was attacking while it was still "asking permission" for an invasion. But if you read the entire 'minutes' or 'memo', you'll see clearly that one of the chief concerns was how to *justify* a war.

And so, I refer you to the excerpt below, especially the words "casus belli", which is defined in the American Heritage dictionary as "an event used to justify starting a war".

"(b) Running Start. U.S. forces already in theatre (3 x 6,000), continuous air campaign, initiated by an Iraqi casus belli. Total lead time of 60 days with the air campaign beginning even earlier. A hazardous option."

The administration wasn't simply trying to 'soften up' the Iraqi military for an upcoming invasion - they were HOPING that Iraq would respond, presumably by shooting down one of the attacking US aircraft.

If it had worked, it would have been Gulf of Tonkin II. Somehow, I think the American people would be a little more pissed off if they realized that the US was TRYING to start a war.

That's my 2 cents, anyway.