powell explains mobile weapons labs

[warchild1/27scout]

colon powell was talking to sean hannity the other day and made an excellent point. why when powell pointed out mobile weapons labs out to un security council did the iraqis just not drive thier mobile weather balloon makers down to unscom hq and say here they are and they're not weapons labs. instead they said "we better hide them good so when the dumbasses leave we can continue."i just thought it was a good point and the alternative thought that they arnt mobile labs is almost laughable :D

[Argyll]

That's right Warchild they were hidden so well,that they were found in the open!!
As far as I'm aware there were no preplaced explosives,to destroy this "evidence",given the fact that their country was being "liberated" don't you think that the Iraqis would not have had contingency plans to "blow" them,to prevent them from falling into enemy hands?
Almost the same statement can be applies to the downed AH64D,outside Nasiriyah,when the 2 crew were captured,CENTCOM and the Pentagon,both stated that it had been blown up by allied aircraft to prevent it falling into enemy hands,only to see it on a flatbed trailer being paraded through Baghdad!!!
The Iraqis are not stupid,why hide all the rest of the WMD,but leave these to be found,it all sounds and seems too convenient do you not think?It just does not make any sense not to have had them destroyed,if they were associated with the WMD program,they knew we were coming to look for them(WMD).The worst thing about it all is that the Euphoria behind the find has been very much hyped up,but the evidence is purely speculative and inconclusive,I would've accepted these as a major find if there were traces of the stuff within these vats,but they werdry,and ther was a comment passed that they didn't seem to have been used in a long time!!
Lets find a 45 gallon drum of VX or Sarin 1st before we start celebrating the "smoking gun"find!!

[Trident-za]

I don't want to stir up a hornet's nest, but this has been puzzling me for some time. Is it possible to destroy WMD without leaving evidence? Please note that I'm not suggesting anything - I am looking for informed answers to a legitimate question.

[96B]

To my knowledge there was more than just one Apache shot down, so how do you know that the one "paraded" through Baghdad on a flatbed truck was that same particular helicopter?

[Argyll]

Good Question Semper,I think it was noticed that serial numbers,weapons configuration,markings etc,were matched to that a/c,but that doesn't answer the question but mearly opens another!!
Why did the US allow that apache longbow fall into Iraqi hands!! Why did the crew not attempt to destroy it?
I think this was the Apache that was supposedly shot down by an Iraqi farmer,which we all know was utter Bull
I don't recall hearing about a CSAR on any other Apache crew,during the war

[96B]

Yea well whether or not it was that same aircraft I guess would be debatable but I agree that it should not have been allowed to get into enemy hands. I think the crew's number one priority was to try to get the hell out of dodge first, but in a situation like that, its almost inevitable that you would get caught! I know that they destroyed armored vehicles and Abrams that got damaged as to not allow them to get into enemy hands, so I dont see why an Apache wouldnt count as important enough to destroy either. It really probably doesnt matter now though, because we are fighting guerillas and not an actual army unfortunately. :roll:

[Duke]

I don't want to stir up a hornet's nest, but this has been puzzling me for some time. Is it possible to destroy WMD without leaving evidence? Please note that I'm not suggesting anything - I am looking for informed answers to a legitimate question.
Biological WMD, such as pathogenic bacteria and viruses can be easily incinerated without leaving evidence. You could even use a gallon of bleach. Conversely, with the correct medium (growing substrates) and equipment (hotboxes etc), a 1/16th of a teaspoon of spores could potential grow tons of bacteria spores, simply depends on what type of equipment you have.

[Trident-za]

Thank you, Duke. How about chemical weapons? How easy are they to destroy? Does anyone know?

[Duke]

Chemical gas warfare are grouped two categories persistent and non-persistent. Obviously, NPGs degrade relatively quickly in an open environment. While persistent are more recalcitrant to chemical breakdown, and thus are more likely to be "swabbed" for evidence. Basically, if you blew up a store of NPG most likely about 95% would dissipate in the atmosphere, whereas a PG would be around 20-25%.
So, inspectors aren't only looking for the gas themselves, they seek the hardware associated with gas warfare--containers, holding units etc etc, where chemical warfare gases have an affinity to attach.

[budanski]

Its funny how many critics were expecting to find stored warheads with chemical agents inside, when in fact warheads and chemicals themselves are stored separately prior to launch.