Like it or not, we are the world's peacekeeper.

Concerns with Iraq began a long time ago and in 1983 the U.N. was receiving word that Saddam was experimenting with chemical weapons on people. Saddam's chemical attack of 1988 killed some 5,000 men, women and children in Hajabja. To this day hundreds more remain crippled and badly disfigured.

In 1991 the U.N. (finally) began to sanction Iraq and demanded; "without further delay full, final and complete disclosures of its proscribed weapons and programs", as required by resolutions 687, 699, 707 and 715. But it was not until 1993 did Iraq agree with resolution 715. After 2 more years refusing to corporate, in 1995 Iraq admitted they had chemical weapons.

But yet another TEN U.N. resolutions and five years later, Iraq has still not complied with the resolutions. How much longer should we have let the U.N. pass resolutions before real action was taken?

Whether or not President Bush was "finishing his father's work", was misled, lied about WMD's or simply was making up for the lack in leadership from the previous 8 years, Saddam needed to be dealt with.

And although I strongly disagree many of the Patriot Act's provisions I would still rather see people in Washington who are aggressive in defense of our country and in world politics and not those who would kneel before the (ineffective) U.N.

The timeline for all this: http://usinfo.state.gov/products/pubs/iraq/timeline.htm

Other sources:

• http://www.cia.gov/
• http://www.fas.org/news/un/iraq/sres/sres0687.htm
• http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB82/
• http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB82/iraq24.pdf
• http://usinfo.state.gov/topical/pol/terror/02110803.htm
• http://www.un.org/Depts/unscom/Chronology/chronologyframe.htm