Question for non Americans:

by Daganev

Back to The Real World.

Daganev2006-02-17 05:09:11
Is America the only country not talking about the new Saddam tapes that talk about his WMDs and "predictions of Terrorism" or is the entire world silent about this, prefering to talk about silly hunting accidents?
Unknown2006-02-17 05:18:34
We're busier laughing at the Texans who charged an Australian woman in a cinema over there for shushing some lady with a big mouth during a movie.
Daganev2006-02-17 05:20:52
heh...

biggest news since the begining of the Iraq war, and its completley ignored by everybody... l'sigh
Unknown2006-02-17 06:27:44
QUOTE(daganev @ Feb 17 2006, 12:20 AM) 259235

heh...

biggest news since the begining of the Iraq war, and its completley ignored by everybody... l'sigh

Does that surprise you though?
Acrune2006-02-17 06:31:09
What would you rather hear? Amusing hunting accidents, or stuff that actually matters? I prefer the first, because there is nothing I can do about either, but Cheney shooting old men in the face gives me the giggles. happy.gif
Unknown2006-02-17 07:23:19
QUOTE(daganev @ Feb 17 2006, 05:09 AM) 259229

Is America the only country not talking about the new Saddam tapes that talk about his WMDs and "predictions of Terrorism" or is the entire world silent about this, prefering to talk about silly hunting accidents?

Why doesn't google give results for these 'Saddam tapes' from many news sources? I find that odd. Especially since BBC isn't there... and I worship the BBC.

But, it doesn't sound like there are many revelations there. Just Saddam saying America could be a target of terrorism, but that it won't come from Iraq. (Assuming I'm reading about the right thing).

Is there more to it than that?
Daganev2006-02-17 07:43:35
there is MUCH more than that
Shikari2006-02-17 07:44:27
The reason is simple.

The rest of the world knew Saddam had WMDs at one point, because Americans sold them to him.

Of course the 'West faces WMD attacks'. It's already had them happen - in the US alone, there have been biological attacks have been occurring frequently since the mid-1960s. In Japan, which is really a 'Western' nation, the Aum cult used nerve gas (chemical weapons) several times and attempted multiple biological attacks. If you really want to stretch the point, two passenger planes have already been used as WMDs.

The reason no-one cares is that it's not news. Saddam hid germ weapons and germ weapon factories after Gulf War I, and this is relatively common knowledge. The tapes date back ten years, to that period. America has been aware of Iraqi BW assets being hidden since before then, and it's a matter of fact that they didn't share this information with the UN due to the presence of Soviet and ex-Soviet Russian scientists being on the inspection teams.
Daganev2006-02-17 07:50:02
Here is what I can figure out from watching the two shows that have talked about the tapes, and the three interviews I have heard from the man who translated the tapes.

1. ABC got exclusive rights to the tape, and then ditched the original translation and put in thier own translation. This new translation that ABC showed changed the context of "Iraq will not do terrorism" from "America will think that Iraq will not do terrorism".

2. The FBI and UN had these tapes for a few years now, and are only now being declasified which is why the translator gave the tapes to ABC.

3. The Transltor said that the ABC report was "misserable" although he said the "world news tonight" report was a good "B+"


The two main things that Saddam says to his cabinet are

1. "Given the way our conversations have lead today, we should not disclose the rest of our nuclear weapons program to the UN inspectors"
and two...

2. "Terrorism will come to america by our agents but they will say, "Iraq can not do terrorism, they have lost thier souls now they will lose everything"

I expect more news will come out in 2 days from now, just like it took some 2 to 3 days for everyone to start talking about the riots over the cartoons.
Unknown2006-02-17 08:04:20
I guess everyone is tired of the "WMD or not" discussion already. dry.gif
Daganev2006-02-17 08:06:16
hmm ok , so when people said "a few years" They ment april of 2005... go figure.

Considering that Barbra Boxer just said yesterady that the whole WMD thing is "a farse"... I find it fairly relevant. If your going to bring something up as bieng " a made up lie" well, therese these hours and hours of tapes that say it wasn't such a made up lie.
Unknown2006-02-17 08:11:09
If the original transcripts/tapes were released... can't anyone do the translation?

If so, why would ABC (which I am assuming is not like Fox) change the meaning so drastically?

Edit: And what Shikari said. Darn eloquently. smile.gif
Daganev2006-02-17 08:14:29
ABC is the reason Fox was started....

He is bringing the tapes to a convention this weakend so that the "security summit" community can translate them as a group.

Here is the google link you are probabbly looking for...

http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&lr=&clie...tnG=Search+News

QUOTE

By Sher Zieve – Appearing on Thursday’s Sean Hannity show, former UN Weapons Inspector and translator Bill Tierney said the translations of the Saddam 12-hours tapes were incorrect. Tierney said that he was originally asked by ABC to provide the translations. However, ABC was said “not to like them” and it, subsequently, hired another translator.

Tierney also said that he was contacted to translate the tapes by the National Virtual Translation Center, which is run by the FBI. Tierney advised that the tapes are filled with Saddam Hussein talking, many times to Tarik Aziz, about terrorist attacks on the US via missiles, chemical and biological WMDs and the necessity of help and support from Russia, France and Brazil.

One of the biggest bones of contention with Tierney is ABC’s translation of Hussein saying “Iraq would never do such a thing”. Tierney advises that this portion of the translation is taken completely out of context. Tierney says that prior to Saddam making that statement, he was talking about attacks on the US but, due to his use of “proxies”, Iraq would not be blamed. The inference is that Hussein, due to his using others not connected with Iraq to affect the US attacks, said that the US and others would say: “Iraq would never do such a thing”.
Unknown2006-02-17 08:24:36
No BBC there either. sad.gif

Edit: And that article is from 'The Conservative Voice'. mellow.gif The third link on the page is from the probably no more reliable source 'NewsMax.Com', and hints that there is nothing interesting in the tapes:

QUOTE( "CIA Yawns at Unexamined Saddam Tapes" @ NewsMax.com)

The Central Intelligence Agency said Wednesday that 12-hours of audio recordings obtained by ABC News showing Saddam Hussein discussing weapons of mass destruction with his Revolutionary Command Council are of little interest to their investigators.

....

"Intelligence community analysts from the CIA, and the DIA reviewed the translations and found that, while fascinating from a historical perspective, the tapes do not reveal anything that changes their post-war analysis of Iraq's weapons programs."

....

Even chief U.S. WMD searcher Charles Duelfer sounded strangely incurious about the jackpot of new intelligence from former top regime officials, which included discussions about hiding weapons of mass destruction from U.N. inspectors.

Asked if the recordings shed any new light on whether Saddam had WMD, Duelfer told "Nightline": "No, they do not."
Daganev2006-02-17 08:28:15
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4719568.stm


I think I understand the problem now... the only source people have of these tapes are ABC which did a really crappy job reporting it, so everyone is just reporting what ABC said.. I'm sure after the weakened people will be talking about them...

damn my jumping the gun.
Unknown2006-02-17 08:30:07
I agree with Shikari - everyone here knows Saddam had WMD's, nobody doubts that, and thus probably not very excited by proof of that (If that's what those are, at lesat).
Unknown2006-02-17 08:33:35
I suppose this will probably link Iraq with the terrorist attacks in new york, for anyone who hasn't been encouraged to do so yet. dry.gif
Daganev2006-02-17 08:34:38
well, Half of the united states keeps insisting that Bush lied and made up the whole "wmd thing"...

I was wondering if other countries in the world, who have troops deployed in Iraq are talking about this at all, or if the whole world has gone silent on things that matter these days..
Morik2006-02-17 08:35:33
Can I have a link or two pointing to relevant news information?
Daganev2006-02-17 08:36:24
QUOTE(Avaer @ Feb 17 2006, 12:33 AM) 259337

I suppose this will probably link Iraq with the terrorist attacks in new york, for anyone who hasn't been encouraged to do so yet. dry.gif



I doubt it. In my mind however it does show that had he built his nuclear weapon program he would have sold the nukes to terrorists. and unlike Iran he would have kept the existance of his nuclear program hidden.

QUOTE(morik @ Feb 17 2006, 12:35 AM) 259339

Can I have a link or two pointing to relevant news information?


Scroll up, I think I posted 3 of them.