<Odyssey of Frustration In Search for Weapons, Army Team Finds Vacuum Cleaners

KEY QUOTES:

"U.S. intelligence called this place "Possible SSO Facility Al Hayat," after the Special Security Organization of President Saddam Hussein. It ranked No. 26 on a U.S. Central Command priority search list. Allison's team pulled up in six Humvees, not long before noon on May 1, to scout for biological and chemical arms."

"One last bolt snapped. The door creaked open and Deal stepped through. There, in the innermost chamber, he found a cache of vacuum cleaners."

"Team 3's odyssey through Iraq is a tale of frustration and disillusionment. Allison and his unit arrived with the firm belief -- and dread -- that Iraq possessed the weapons of chemical war. They expected U.S. intelligence to guide them, and they were secure in their own technology and skills. When probe after probe sank dry holes, and the team's mission appeared to have failed, a sardonic tone began to creep into discussions of their work."

"But no one has confirmed that Iraq actually manufactured or retained a biological or chemical weapon after the last ones accounted for by U.N. inspectors in 1998."

"It ended up being some kid's high school science project."

"It had been days since the team had drawn a mission with any prospect of success. Nearly all the top weapons sites had been exhausted. Allison and his fellow team leaders were paying pro forma visits to buildings that had long since been swept clean by other Americans in the capital."

"Is it a WMD facility? No, sir, the description is not WMD at all,. Likely abandoned after 1998. May be used by high ranking officials. Yadda yadda yadda. This is going to be a waste of time."

A waste of time indeed. And lives and billions of dollars. Meanwhile Al Qaeda continues to make its mark. Some war against terrorism.