# Oil for Food?



## gimpy34 (Aug 10, 2004)

The story unfolds. 'Tis believed the French receieved ~2 billion in oil vouchers from Saddaam and the Russians benefitted $10 million or so in similar ways. It's not new that the French or Russians were chummy with the Iraqis. Russians were providing weapons to Iraqis in Iraq until we told them we were going to attack and to get the hell out of there. Saddaam was also paying families of Palestinian suicide bombers $25,000 a pop.

One of the more interesting things I heard today came from a new CIA report, which said Iraq had the oportunity to have some of the U.N. sanctions lifted against them in 1996, but Saddaam chose to be uncooperative with them, in essence, "to hold his own people hostage." Otherwise, with lifted sanctions, Saddaam would have lost some control over the Iraqi people. This came from, I think one of the CIA directors in charge of the WMD investigation, who has been in Iraq gathering intelligence from Iraqis where this oil-for-food thing unfolded. Before leaving Iraq a couple of weeks ago, he was in a car attacked by a suicide car bomb but survived while two others in his vehicle were killed.

Something else interesting. I was watching a SNL re-run from 2000 when Clinton was president and on Weekend Update, Colin Quinn was discussing how Clinton was threatening to take military action if Saddaam would not cooperate with U.N. weapon inspections. I was much younger then and not really interested in politics and was never aware the extent to which Clinton had become involved.

The main thing i want to say is that I wish Jacques Chirac would shut his f'n mouth. He came out with a new statement today denouncing the war and he has no ground to stand on when intelligence points to Chirac's foreign minister and the French National Bank taking kickbacks from Saddaam and getting 2 bil. out of this scam.


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## danny (Sep 2, 2004)

hey

i believe what you are saying about the French motive for saying no is wrong, but just like to point out


> It's not new that the French or Russians were chummy with the Iraqis. Russians were providing weapons to Iraqis in Iraq until we told them we were going to attack and to get the hell out of there.


the US too also gave the Iraqi's millions when they wanted them during the Iran - Iraq war (and were secretly funding the Iranians also) so we cannot get to high and mighty when other countries do the same thing for self interest. We are all hypocrites (as states) together


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## gimpy34 (Aug 10, 2004)

yeah, we were good pals with Saddaam in the late 70s and early 80s during the whole Iran affair. I never said the U.S. was never hypocritical. Hypocrisy is the nature of diplomacy. We won't do crap to the Russians or French because they are our "allies" even though I can't remember the last time we agreed with the French on anything. It is however, very hypocritical that just as the oil for food ordeal unravels and makes connections to the French government, Chirac comes out and says this. I think he also said he is becoming very irritated with Bush. Well, understandable but it's your turn in the hot seat, Chirac. I guess he's trying to divert the heat away from the French and have it stay on us.

I think we have been frustrated with the French long before this war, and I don't think we're the only ones, no offense to anybody on this board who may be from France.


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## = n (Nov 17, 2004)

Do you have a widely trusted source or link for these widely circulated rumours or do we have to take your word for it?


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## gimpy34 (Aug 10, 2004)

I saw the CIA director in charge of this give his speech before a council in Washington yesterday on FoxNews. I believe some foreign ambassadors and UN members were in attendance. So, it should be in any newspaper, on every news channel, or with any other news source by now.


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