It is quite polluted with nitrates etc. but the appearance isn't new if Kipling wrote about it. I've seen it at different times of the year and at different places and there are fish as well as vegetation. It's supposed to be quite silted when flooding so that may be part of the story. Certainly there is mining in parts of the basin, but the area is mineral rich naturally anyway. It's not quite a Parys Mountain run-off.
Fascinating, Andy. Thanks.
Right, before you go to the great kf in my pc I'll say that you ignored my contradiction of your assertation that "We have been privileged to enjoy possible the longest period of peace in history."
Your ignorance is matched only by your belligerence.
You also, somewhere else, said that some things were worth fighting for and mentioned Mugabwe. But you won't risk your own life to fight him ...
You do tend to ignore pertinent points when they show that your arguments are flawed.
Strong words. Alas, your analysis is perfectly accurate.
Tsssk, no. "Poison gas" is a chemical weapon, not a biological weapon. The Halabja poison gas attack started with unpleasant conventional weapons (napalm and HE rockets) and proceeded to a variety of chemical weapons. It's difficult to know exactly which chemical weapons were used but one certainty is mustard gas and it is probable that others used included sarin, tabun and VX as well as hydrogen cyanide.
A hint was that the general in charge of operations was known as "Chemical Ali".
The suppliers for the chemical weapon precursors were Singapore, the Netherlands, Eqypt, India, West Germany and the USA. No UK company has been implicated.
The UK (Oxoid) supplied culture media for the growth of anthrax. It would be surprising if anyone at Oxoid involved in the deal was unaware of the purpose that the media would be used for. However there's no evidence that Saddam ever got production of weaponised anthrax going.
That seems to indicate that a UK company was involved in Saddam's weapons programme. The fact that Saddam did not produce anthrax doesn't get that company off the hook - they still supplied the media.
Ignorance of what it might be used for does not make them innocent. Matrix Churchill tried to claim they didn't know what their precision machined metal tubes were to be used for (the supergun project) but their directors were still convicted.
I'm not suggesting otherwise.
I don't think they were ignorant of the use of the media. The type of media ordered and the huge quantities are a bit of a giveaway.
As far as I am aware no one at Oxoid has ever faced prosecution.
On Tue, 22 Apr 2008 10:29:01 +0100, "Mary Fisher"
Because for the VAST majority of people in Britain, that is true. If you want to concentrate on your personal interest story, that's your right of course.
Childish in the extreme. Zimbawe is not my problem. It's called an "illustration", that there are issues where negotiation hasn't worked and fighting is fully justified, which was my initial issue with Bruce, who seems to believe everyone is as reasonable as him.
It was more a warning, that the real world is a harsh place. As for the kf, that's a pity. There are far worse things in the world than a NG disagreement.
ATB Andy
In message , The Medway Handyman writes
Not at the time he had to produce a list of his weapons / the "coalition" invaded
I have a 12 page "proof" somewhere of why he couldn't have had active BCN weapons - I can send it to you if you want
We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the drugs began to take hold. I remember %steve%@malloc.co.uk (Steve Firth) saying something like:
Istr the difference between one of the nerve agents (Sarin?) and organophosphate pesticide is the presence of one OH molecule. I also str that Germany sold Saddam a complete turnkey package of a pesticide plant sometime in the early 80s. I'd be very surprised if there were no skilled chemists in the Iraq of the time.
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