The odds that the Saddam led Iraqi Government helped al-Qaida?

[JanMichael]

Poll question: The odds that the Saddam led Iraqi Government helped al-Qaida?

More specifically helped al-Qaida attack the WTC towers, crash the Pennsylvania plane, and the Pentagon?

[Bridget Burke]

1. Somebody picked 100%....

But left no evidence!

[JanMichael]

2. OK, who voted 100%?

Care to post some evidence? Since the misAdministration as already said on several occasions that they didn't think it was case I'd like to see your "evidence".

[knight_of_the_star]

3. Probably a FReeper

It would be like them to do something like that.

[Shirley_U_Geste]

4. I think Saddam helped al-Qaida

And so I responded 100%.

BUT, I didn't see your qualifier about specific help on the 9/11 attack.

I would go with a lower number given that qualifier. Maybe 30% or so.

But in general, it strikes me as logical that Iraq would have aided al-Qaida in one way or another. I know there are significant religious differences, but these religious extremists are more focused on the "extreme" than they are on the "religion".

[cirej2000]

5. What ways would you think that Iraq helped?

I don't know how they would be able to pull this off in Iraq as the UN pretty much had things contained.

Wasn't very easy for Iraqis to fly around to and from other places.

Osama hates non-believers and Osama never really cared much for Palestinians who were the peoples that Saddam played lipservice to.

I'm not trying to attack you. I just want to know more information that you would use to form any sort of link.

[Shirley_U_Geste]

9. primarily financially

Saddam was a very rich man. For example, he paid bounties to the families of Palestinian suicide bombers in Israel.

It doesn't seem too much of a stretch to me that he likely funded some al-Qaida terrorist operations.

But who knows for sure?

[JanMichael]

10. Um...The Saudis are fairly well off and...

Osama is, well, a Saudi and...The vast majority of the WTC killers were Saudi and...Didn't the wife of one of the Saudi Princes wire a huge amount to one of the WTC killers in the summer before the murders?

Still not grasping the Saddam angle, it's independant of the known facts.

[cirej2000]

11. The only thing is that eventually they'd come after him

Unless it was extortion. But I doubt that.
There were also Al Qaeda groups who had affiliations with the Kurds and the Kurds were most definitely anti-saddam. So he probably wouldn't want that.

[JanMichael]

13. Good point, I forgot about the Kurds. They protected al Qaida...

...while the No Fly Zone protected them from Saddam's military (what little there was of an Iraqi military).

[cirej2000]

15. Ya never know in this world.

Not saying that it didn't happen. Just that logic precludes it.
Then again, Saddam isn't always a man of logic.

But if you're were playing the odds strictly. I'd put it at 10 to 1 against.

[Astarho]

12. I doubt it

Saddam would not be foolish enough to fund an enemy who would be just as likely to use that funding to attack him.

Unfortunately, it seems we're the only ones dumb enough to do that.

[arcane1]

18. indeed we are

:evilfrown:

[salin]

16. The biggest problem with this theory is that Al Queada

and its two big leaders (OBL and Zawhari (sp?) had a two prong plan - first to unite the arab world in a struggle against the west - primarily the UN, and two recreate the arab world in a wahabi theocratic form. Indeed Zawhari was part of a series of attacks on Egypt because the government was deemed to secular. Iraq, being one of the most secular governments in the region, was an enemy and potential target of Al Queada.

Meanwhile Saddam, of tyraniccal nature, was not one to blithely hug his enemies (or any he saw who might become a threat to him.) To work in an active way with al queada (eg funding efforts - even those to attack the US)... would be to aid those who are just as likely to stage attacks within Iraq (as they had in Egypt and Saudi Arabia). Look at his brutal suppression of the Kurds after their uprising (post GulfWar 1). To support Al queada would be inviting work with insurgent groups in the uncontrolled areas of IRaq (in the north.) I don't think he would be working in a way that would strengthen the hand of those elements within his own country that wanted to see the secular Iraqi government (eg HIM) overthrown.

[JanMichael]

7. I don't agree with your logic.

It's a common though to lump all them aRabs together but the fact is that Osama didn't NEED Iraq's help for anything' plus every statement he made basically suggests that he thought that the Baath Party was as big a "Satan" as the US, remember the Taliban? The Palistinian groups that Saddam DID support never attack US civilians or soldiers, just Israel, sort of one trick ponies. Not nearly as Internationalist as alQaida/Osama, way too Provencial.

Soory, I don't buy it.

[arcane1]

8. not so logical, actually

Osama repeatedly refered to Saddam as a socialist infidel, and it was only after our invasion that he told his followers that it was ok to be on Saddam's side in this exceptional circumstance

it was ILLEGAL to even practice Wahabbi Islam in Iraq!

can you elaborate on the logic? I'm missing it...


though, actually, there IS a Sadddam/al Qaeda connection, but there is a degree of separation between them:

the USA funded, armed, and trained al Qaeda

the USA funded, armed, and trained Saddam

[Shirley_U_Geste]

14. nothing elaborate

It is just my opinion that these evil bastards are not really religious at all. I think their extremism is their guiding ideology. And as such, I think they most likely colaborated at times.

If Saddam were REALLY a true believer he would have gone down in a blaze of glory and would right now be banging 72 virgins. If he were a believer he would have "walked the walk".

Just my opinion :)

Let me put in a disclaimer here: I am biased against pretty much all religious freaks. I consider them all whores that are trying to attach their ends to a particular religion. Richard Dawkins called religion a virus of the mind (and thus coined the term "meme"). The bioterrorists will at some point attempt to blend another more deadly virus to a common virus. It is my belief that this has already been done to the religion virus.

[arcane1]

17. Saddam was NOT wahabbi

Not ALL muslims live by the 72 virgins bullshit, first of all.

Second of all, those who DID share that belief were not allowed to practice it in Iraq!

Saddam may have been Muslim, but he was no "religious freak". Iraq was a secular government under Saddam, thus giving OBL a good reason to hate him. For crissakes, Saddam had a Christian VP!!

you are basing your opinion on gross overgeneralizations if Islam, Iraq, and al Qaeda. Just because Saddam and the Ba'athists were Arabs, and some were Muslim, did not make them identical to the Taliban. No burkhas in Iraq (to the dismay of the fundies). And besides, your claim that Saddam was not a believer in Islam (aka an infidel) kind of shoots holes in the opinion that he was chummy with radical fundamentalists who wanted to kill all infidels.

I guess since Catholics and Protestants all believe in Jesus, they must've worked together all the time? No difference between the two?

well, in my "opinion" Catholics and Protestants got along and worked together all the time, and the violence, terrorism, and bloodshed was just a ruse to keep the proles distracted.

[RC]

6. George Walker Bu$h, pResident, had more to do

with helping al-Qaida than Saddam ever did. Remember the carpet of gold or carpet of bombs quote? And the $40+ million the WH gave them in May of 2001...

Dealing with the enemy is a old bu$h tradition.

[pippin]

19. C'mon, are we now going to buy the republican crap ??

[Jacobin]

20. I'm astounded at either the freeper lurkers here or the degree

to which DUers have been brainwashed by the media.

This place needs some cleaning up!!!!!!!!

[cirej2000]

21. It's gotta be freepers

That doesn't fit a bell shaped curve...

You'd see more of a distribution in the other selections...

Now back to our regularly scheduled program.