And while Im all fired up, the 650K Iraqi casualty figure is indeed controversial. The Lancet study that sites that number did not restrict itself to known deaths caused by war related violence, but also included demographic based estimates that include mortality rates associated with war-related conditions such as drought, famine, disease, lack of access to health services etc. Hard core confirmable deaths related to violence might be less. But there are also studies that suggest the figure is over a million.

The Kurdish genecide in Iraq, while I may not think it comparable, is indeed horrible. If you are suggesting that such a genecide is/was a legitimate justification for OIF and the follow on occupation, I can accept that. Nothing you have said in this thread would lead me to believe that is your primary, or even important consideration, but if you say so, so be it. But using this logic I must assume that you also believed that we should have unilaterally invaded Rwanda to prevent that tragedy, and should be in the Sudan now. Or is the humanitarian justification nothing more than a convenient post-fact rationalization?

- Os