Is This Hussein's Counterattack?

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1802&ncid=1802&e=1&u=/washpost/20031113/ts_washpost/a34071_2003nov12

Is This Hussein's Counterattack?

By Vernon Loeb and Thomas E. Ricks, Washington Post Staff Writers

BAGHDAD, Nov. 12 -- The recent string of high-profile attacks on U.S. and allied forces in Iraq has appeared to be so methodical and well crafted that some top U.S. commanders now fear this may be the war Saddam Hussein and his generals planned all along.

Knowing from the 1991 Persian Gulf War (news - web sites) that they could not take on the U.S. military with conventional forces, these officers believe, the Baath Party government cached weapons before the Americans invaded this spring and planned to employ guerrilla tactics.

"I believe Saddam Hussein always intended to fight an insurgency should Iraq fall," said Maj. Gen. Charles H. Swannack Jr., commanding general of the 82nd Airborne Division and the man responsible for combat operations in the lower Sunni Triangle, the most unstable part of Iraq. "That's why you see so many of these arms caches out there in significant numbers all over the country. They were planning to go ahead and fight an insurgency, should Iraq fall."

In an interview Wednesday at his headquarters northwest of the capital, Swannack said the speed of the fall of Baghdad in April probably caught Hussein and his followers by surprise and prevented them from launching the insurgence for a few months. That would explain why anti-U.S. violence dropped off noticeably in July and early August but then began to trend upward.<snip>

but I think the CIA is chasing ghosts. Saddam and Osama are likely dead.

had plenty of time to hide and the confidence to know exactly what Bush was going to do, I cannot concur. I will tell you one thing, if after all this we haven't gotten them then we are in trouble.

what makes you think that either man is dead?

They were able to kill Saddam's sons, I would think they'd be as well guarded as he would be. I think he possibly died in the so-called 'decapitation' strike, and the guy on the tapes was one of his lookalikes. Saddam and Osama are just red herrings to distract us, I think. It really doesn't make a difference if we find either.
I could of course be totally wrong, this is just my reasoning.
It's also not impossible that the CIA have discretely placed them somewhere, either because they were agents, or placed them in Cold Storage for future use. I just don't think they're out there.

and they'd trumpet it loud and clear. They scoured the area for DNA evidence and found none. The mystery surrounding where Sadaam is is keeping a lot of Iraqis very nervous about supporting the U.S., and believing that Sadaam may come back.

As far as Osama- He's a very rich man, and there are portable dialysis machines out there- Dean Kamen of "Segway" fame designed one awhile back.
However- if either of them is dead, I'd be more inclined to think that Osama would have the hardest time surviving...BUT- he's supposedly in an area where the people are extremely loyal and supportive of him.

useful names to bring up to scare people back into line. Do you think it's scientifically possible they could have a body in Cold Storage for use at the most politically advantageous moment?]
ON EDIT - What do you reckon happened to Saddam's lookalikes. Wouldn't we have caught one by now?

Especially in the case of Sadaam. The longer it takes, the more incompetant they look, and the more 'power' it gives to the opposition resistance. Besides, how & where would they keep them...?
The more people that it would take to carry out a conspiracy theory, the less likely it is to be true.

Perhaps they decided that looking like Saddam was no longer such a good gig.

are living it up in some tropical paradise, living off their CIA pensions.

but somehow the thrill is gone

"Iraq war? That's so last summer."

For the past couple of weeks, I've been trying to track down an article I saw right after the apparent "collapse" of the old regime. It speculated that this was exactly the Ba'athists' strategy - to make it look as if everyone had been dispersed.

If anyone has also seen this article, please let me know - I can't find it in my archives.

...and planned for. The large number of trained irregular forces and the large number of weapons caches are substantial evidence of this plan.

Last night Saddam's translator said that he was reading the Schwartzkof book on Iraq I and a history of guerilla warfare in Vietnam. He may be dead but he left a plan and obviously an organized group is following up on it.

That's all I have to say.