Last week, after pressure from bloggers led to pressure on the media which led to pressure on the government, the Pentagon admitted it used White Phosphorous as a weapon in Iraq.  However the Pentagon (and many others) said that WP was not a chemical weapon.

I’ve seen long and passionate analysis about how and why it shouldn’t be considered a chemical weapon.  A truly horrific weapon, which melts the skin off of human beings, but not technically a “chemical weapon”.

Except that the Pentagon itself has previously classified WP as a chemical weapon:

The controversy over the American use of white phosphorus as a weapon of war in Fallujah deepened yesterday when it was revealed that a US intelligence assessment had characterised WP as a “chemical weapon”.

The Italian journalist who sparked the controversy, Sigfrido Ranucci, told a press conference in Rome that while a colleague was browsing American Defence Department websites he had stumbled on a declassified intelligence report from the first Gulf War.

The irony is so painful it draws blood.  When Evil Tyrant(TM) Saddam Hussein uses WP, then it’s a chemical weapon.  When the United States does, then it’s a “standard munition”.  Incredible.

You can read the declassified DOD page here for yourself, including this passage:

IRAQI FORCES LOYAL TO PRESIDENT SADDAM ((HUSSEIN)) MAY HAVE POSSIBLY USED WHITE PHOSPHOROUS (WP) CHEMICAL WEAPONS AGAINST KURDISH REBELS AND THE POPULACE IN ERBIL (GEOCOORD:3412N/04401E) (VICINITY OF IRANIAN BORDER) AND DOHUK (GEOCOORD:3652N/04301E) (VICINITY OF IRAQI BORDER) PROVINCES, IRAQ. THE WP CHEMICAL WAS DELIVERED BY ARTILLERY ROUNDS AND HELICOPTER GUNSHIPS

So let’s review:

  1. Saddam uses WP? It’s classified as a chemical weapon
  2. U.S. uses WP in Fallujah and elsewhere? Originally denied by Pentagon and gov’t
  3. Bloggers discover documentation of its use and RAI Italian channel produces horrifying documentary on its use?  Pentagon admits its use
  4. Pentagon and “experts” all say its NOT a chemical weapon

Rinse lather and repeat.

I guess the “character” of the commander-in-chief ordering the use of WP against civilians is now the determining factor on whether or not WP is a chemical weapon, eh?

Peace

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