Quote: "Completely wrong. Saddam was in violation of the UN weapon agreements long before we moved in. The US brought this up as a problem after 9/11. The UN agreed that if he didn't do something about it, they would take action. He didn't, and they failed to take action. We did."
What Mr Blix said about this:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/2966639.stm
Quote: "Saddam's regime was probaly the most brutal government in modern times. It was a place where anyone who spoke against the government was killed, often their death made a public display;"
Well, Saddam's regime was brutal, no doubt. He killed and tortured his own people to save his position and might. Used chemical weapons (where did he get them from?) on Kurds and during the war against Iran. But most brutal regimes... North Korea, anyone?
Quote: "where women were forced to take the roles of inferiors and slaves and arrested (to be raped and later killed) if they didn't."
Unfortunately this can be said about a lot more countries. Since we both weren't there, we can only rely on other sources. Like ythe ones you posted, or like this one:
Quote: "In the long struggle between Iraq and the US, Iraqi women have been the most harmed of that nation's beleaguered masses. Like men, of course, they've lost opportunities and seen their living standard plummet. But they've also been forced into social contracts which they thought ended a century ago.
[...]
As far as we know, Iraqi women were not raped—not directly. But as a result of war conditions ignited by the sanctions, they've lost many of the rights they had"
By Barbara Nimri Aziz, Third World Network, 5 July 1998
Quote: "In the corridors of a Baghdad University, many women students say they now want a decent career before they will consider marriage.
Doctor Bathenal Hilu, head of the psychology department, believes the high rate of unmarried women is, in fact, a positive phenomenon."
By Caroline Hawley in Baghdad, BBC, 6 November 2001
Obviously in some parts, our sources contradict each other. So what's the truth?
Me, I'll sit and write this love song as I all too seldom do
build a little fire this midnight. It's good to be back home with you.
