Inside the mind of SADDAM

Saddam's story as reported here is ringing true to me, too. The man was about to die and wanted his story told. He surely knew it would do him no good to lie. It all makes sense to me.

Hello Destiny & Red, I absolutely concur with both of your reasoning. There are only two reasons why I will withold judgement until I've read the full account. They are: 1. There was great speculation as to whether Saddam was being held criminally liable by the U.S., it's surrogate, or a fully sovereign Iraqi government. I imagine that Saddam must have been hedging his bets that the US was ultimately in control of his destiny. "Alani said the defense team would prove Saddam's "legal rights have been denied" and would question the court's legitimacy, citing international laws that say a court formed under occupation is considered invalid." http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=nation_world&id=3434942 Hussein's second trial ... http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/21/world/middleeast/21cnd-hussein.html?ex=1313812800&en=ac036bd79e5edfc3&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss 2. For me, discerning whether Hussein's account is factual will largely depend on any reference to the convoy of tractor trailers viewed (via satellite) leaving a Hussein/Iraqi munitions warehouse (headed toward Syria) days before the US invasion to topple the Hussein regime. According to the promo, Hussein alleged that he had no current WMD program, yet planned to redevelop such a program once the UN sanctions were lifted. Yet, Hussein had set up a large-scale network of cronies using the illegally skimmed "Oil for Food" monies. So, unless and until the full account reveals what was being trucked out of Iraq, and to what purpose the "Oil for Food" theft was allocated, I cannot dismiss the possibility that Hussein was simply hedging his bets. Giving the US enough information to render him a valuable information asset (remembering that Hussein would have been accutely aware of Iran also being named as part of the "Axis of Evil"), thereby allaying his worst fears that his own people would be charged with enactment of justice against him for his crimes against humanity. Hussein's arrogance has long been attested. So, I imagine that he fully expected some kind of a 'Hail Mary' maneuver. One that would allow him to live out his days in abundent obscurity in Saudi Arabia. Moreover, the article references the appearance of Hussein's reaction to execution as having been rehearsed. So, if he didn't get his "Hail Mary" move, then I imagine that his legacy was an important second to his survival. As such, it would have behooved Hussein (in his own mind) to go out with the knowledge that his people would still see him as a benevolent patriarch, rather than a sadistic tyrant. All in all, it is a great challenge to try to imagine the inner workings of any one else's mind, let alone a megalomaniac. Perhaps Hussein's ultimate objective was to inflict guilt into the collective mind-set of those who judged him. Accepting such guilt would render any such judges that much less potent when judging his cronies, and family, after his passing.

LadyLuna, I can't give a BR for a comment, you know! I wish the news networks would hire someone like you to report on the goings on in the world. None of the major news reporting is as analytical as your comment or Destiny's. That said, I have to agree that it is difficult imagining the workings of a mind like Saddam's. I find it disquieting that I have some skill for it.