"A parting thought fwiw, there is no evidence of dark energy but still the universe is expanding at an accelerating rate. "

Yes, and alternative theories abound. Scientific american has an excellent one in its newest issue. Unlike the as-yet experimentally unconfirmable Dark Energy hyp, this one actually offers a set of experiments that could confirm or deny it. Thats a plus in my book.

Fortunately, cosmologists tend to be loath to kill people based on theoretical structures that have no direct evidence. Its why Science lands probes on Mars while warmongers are being led around by their clueless noses.

One should not go around killing people wholesale when
1) You have no evidence to back your premise that they need to be killed
2) Good evidence exists backing the contradiction of your claims, and is demonstrated again and again to you.

"If you want to believe Iraq needed a counter terrorist team I guess you have your reasons."

Obviously the British and US governments thought it needed one in the 80's, and helped train it. Records of this abound. I'm no longer in the business of doing homework for others who don't read it except to try to find a loophole or a strawman case, so I will not do my customary spring shower of links here.

As to their realistic need: Saddam may have been a murderous monster, but Iraq is/was plagued by several anti-baathist (and before the typical conclusions are drawn by the black-and white thinkers:) and anti-american paramilitary groups. MMK, and Ansar-Al-Islam (AAI) are two of them, but there is at least one other secular kurdist political terrorist group in addition to those two Islamist terrorist groups.

Would you not agree that a country the size of california infested by no less than three terrorist groups whose prime ambition is to overthrow the government might wish to acquire anti-terrorist paramilitary groups actually ??

"Glad to see you're still out there.
"

I spend most of my time over haunting space, but I browse here from time to time and try to get involved in a thread about once or twice a month. I do still enjoy listening to the prognostications and rampant slavering indignation of this set of folks who have been wrong on every claim they have made about WMD and terrorists.

Davin L.