550metric tons of Uranium removed from Iraq. Was Bush right all along?

[type911]

Why wasn't this ever broadcast? Look at the date?

U.S. removes 'yellowcake' from Iraq - Conflict in Iraq- msnbc.com

Secret U.S. mission hauls uranium from Iraq
Last major stockpile from Saddam's nuclear efforts arrives in Canada

The last major remnant of Saddam Hussein's nuclear program — a huge stockpile of concentrated natural uranium — reached a Canadian port Saturday to complete a secret U.S. operation that included a two-week airlift from Baghdad and a ship voyage crossing two oceans.

The removal of 550 metric tons of "yellowcake" — the seed material for higher-grade nuclear enrichment — was a significant step toward closing the books on Saddam's nuclear legacy. It also brought relief to U.S. and Iraqi authorities who had worried the cache would reach insurgents or smugglers crossing to Iran to aid its nuclear ambitions.

What's now left is the final and complicated push to clean up the remaining radioactive debris at the former Tuwaitha nuclear complex about 12 miles south of Baghdad — using teams that include Iraqi experts recently trained in the Chernobyl fallout zone in Ukraine.............................

 

[FX4 SAPPER]

Pretty much. It doesnt matter though now, we could publish all the proof that we could find to support the Iraq invasion but the media would still make us out to look like the bad guys.

 

[ScareCrow]

snopes.com: Yellowcake Uranium Removed from Iraq

 

[Rush]

It was reported, but since it wasn't an actual WMD in the flesh is was brushed off...

 

[Rush]

snopes.com: Yellowcake Uranium Removed from Iraq

That Snopes article is misleading. The yellowcake was indeed there as the article describes. Snopes false status is in regard to the question of whether or not Saddam was using it for his nuclear program and how "secretive" the operation was...

 

[ScareCrow]

It was reported, but since it wasn't an actual WMD in the flesh is was brushed off...

In the above provided link :

The yellow cake removed from Iraq in 2008 was material that had long been identified, documented, and stored in sealed containers under the supervision of U.N. inspectors. It was not a "secret" cache that was "discovered" by the U.S.

The uranium was the remnants of decades old nuclear reactor projects that had put out of commision many years earlier. One reactor was bombed by Israel in 1981, and another was bombed during operation desert storm in 1991.

 

[Rush]

In the above provided link :

The yellow cake removed from Iraq in 2008 was material that had long been identified, documented, and stored in sealed containers under the supervision of U.N. inspectors. It was not a "secret" cache that was "discovered" by the U.S.

The uranium was the remnants of decades old nuclear reactor projects that had put out of commision many years earlier. One reactor was bombed by Israel in 1981, and another was bombed during operation desert storm in 1991.

See my response right above yours brother...:beer:

 

[ScareCrow]

See my response right above yours brother...:beer:

Got ya :beer:

"Was Bush right all along" is what I should have directed that at. Considering we knew about it all along and it was no 'secret'

 

[harry gilbert]

Why wasn't this ever broadcast? Look at the date?

U.S. removes 'yellowcake' from Iraq - Conflict in Iraq- msnbc.com

Why? Because the mainstream media has a liberal bias and no longer objectively reports the news. They filter and spin to present a liberal-Democrat agenda, and were deeply invested in seeing Bush's Presidency fail.

 

[STAMPEDE3]

That Snopes article is misleading. The yellowcake was indeed there as the article describes. Snopes false status is in regard to the question of whether or not Saddam was using it for his nuclear program and how "secretive" the operation was...

Exactly.

It also states that it was under the "supervision of U.N. inspectors", Does everyone not remember when they kicked all the inspectors out and wouldn't allow any more inspections?

That led to a lot of speculation of what he was doing with the stuff.

 

[astrocreep96]

It appears that nobody in this thread understands what yellowcake is.:lol:

It's a commodity. It's slated to be traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange and it currently goes for about $40/lb. You can buy it, I can buy it, and yes...even Saddam could buy it. It's a mildly refined ore, not enriched uranium (not to 20% for reactor purposes, and certainly not to higher levels required to make a bomb). It can't even be used to make a dirty bomb.

 

[harry gilbert]

It appears that nobody in this thread understands what yellowcake is.:lol:

It's a commodity. It's slated to be traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange and it currently goes for about $40/lb. You can buy it, I can buy it, and yes...even Saddam could buy it. It's a mildly refined ore, not enriched uranium (not to 20% for reactor purposes, and certainly not to higher levels required to make a bomb). It can't even be used to make a dirty bomb.

That's the typical "technically true but misleading" spin the liberal media put on this story.

Yellowcake is used in the preparation of fuel for nuclear reactors, where it is processed into purified UO2 for use in fuel rods for PHWR and other systems using unenriched uranium. It may also be enriched, by being converted to uranium hexafluoride gas (UF6), by isotope separation through gaseous diffusion or in a gas centrifuge to produce enriched uranium suitable for use in weapons and reactors.

And part of a nuclear weapons program is acquisition of precursor chemicals as well as the centrifuges needed to process into weapons-grade material.

By the way, the many thousands of tons of high explosives and artillery shells that Sadam amassed are also WMDs, despite the mutating definition pushed by the liberal media. A "Weapon of Mass Destruction" has traditionally been defined as a munitions with the capacity to kill large numbers of human beings indiscriminately. That's what IEDs do. Only recently have the libs "redefined" the term so as to seemingly it limit it to chemical, nuclear, or biological weapons. I would suggest to you that when an IED made from Sadam's stockpile of explosives goes off and kills 30 or so people, that's the "indiscriminate killing of a large number of people". Want to quibble about how large "large" is?

Pseudoephedrine is a useful medicine for treating sinusitis. When someone buys large quantities of it, they typically are using it as a precursor in the manufacture of methamphetamine, not to treat a headcold.

Why do YOU think Sadam had 550 tons of yellowcake? He was such a peace-loving person, wasn't he?

Furthermore, I take exception to your assertion that "It can't even be used to make a dirty bomb". With a little refining, yes it can.

 

[astrocreep96]

That's the typical "technically true but misleading" spin the liberal media put on this story.

Yellowcake is used in the preparation of fuel for nuclear reactors, where it is processed into purified UO2 for use in fuel rods for PHWR and other systems using unenriched uranium. It may also be enriched, by being converted to uranium hexafluoride gas (UF6), by isotope separation through gaseous diffusion or in a gas centrifuge to produce enriched uranium suitable for use in weapons and reactors.

And part of a nuclear weapons program is acquisition of precursor chemicals as well as the centrifuges needed to process into weapons-grade material.

By the way, the many thousands of tons of high explosives and artillery shells that Sadam amassed are also WMDs, despite the mutating definition pushed by the liberal media. A "Weapon of Mass Destruction" has traditionally been defined as a munitions with the capacity to kill large numbers of human beings indiscriminately. That's what IEDs do. Only recently have the libs "redefined" the term so as to seemingly it limit it to chemical, nuclear, or biological weapons. I would suggest to you that when an IED made from Sadam's stockpile of explosives goes off and kills 30 or so people, that's the "indiscriminate killing of a large number of people". Want to quibble about how large "large" is?

Pseudoephedrine is a useful medicine for treating sinusitis. When someone buys large quantities of it, they typically are using it as a precursor in the manufacture of methamphetamine, not to treat a headcold.

Why do YOU think Sadam had 550 tons of yellowcake? He was such a peace-loving person, wasn't he?

Furthermore, I take exception to your assertion that "It can't even be used to make a dirty bomb". With a little refining, yes it can.

A little refining, Harry? Soldiers in Chechnya created a dirty bomb using Cesium-137 with a half-life of 30 years - Uranium-238 has a half life of 4.5 billion years and 99.5% of mined uranium is U238. Refining is not an easy process, much less getting it to a level of U235 that would be considered useful in a dirty bomb. Creating UF6 from unrefined, unprocessed uranium ore (one of the more abundant compounds in the world) is a far cry from making meth with some Sudafed. If you think they are an equal comparison, you clearly have absolutely no idea what you're talking about. But since you think a publicly traded commodity is a WMD, that much is already apparent.

And drop the damned "liberal bias" bs. Fox News is the largest cable network right now and has been for some time. The story was debunked because it started out as bunk!

 

[astrocreep96]

And as a follow-up, let's clarify a few things here:

The question was not "does Saddam have yellowcake?" or "is Saddam a nice guy?" or "does Saddam like men?"

The question was "is Saddam buying up yellowcake for the express purposes of creating a dirty bomb or a nuclear bomb, and is that justification for invading Iraq, as Bush has suggested."

No one is arguing that Saddam was a total piece of shit. He demonstrated that time and time again. But the assertion that Saddam was buying and storing yellowcake to make a nuke, and that justified our invasion, is categorically false. The yellowcake that was removed had existed in Iraq for many years specifically because Saddam couldn't do a thing with it.

 

[harry gilbert]

A little refining, Harry? Soldiers in Chechnya created a dirty bomb using Cesium-137 with a half-life of 30 years - Uranium-238 has a half life of 4.5 billion years and 99.5% of mined uranium is U238. Refining is not an easy process, much less getting it to a level of U235 that would be considered useful in a dirty bomb. Creating UF6 from unrefined, unprocessed uranium ore (one of the more abundant compounds in the world) is a far cry from making meth with some Sudafed. If you think they are an equal comparison, you clearly have absolutely no idea what you're talking about. But since you think a publicly traded commodity is a WMD, that much is already apparent.

And drop the damned "liberal bias" bs. Fox News is the largest cable network right now and has been for some time. The story was debunked because it started out as bunk!

No, I wasn't equating preparation of meth from pseudoephedrine / Sudafed with refining yellowcake. One can be done by an individual in a hotel room; the other requires the resources of a country. (Like Iran and Korea are doing now, and Sadam wanted to do). The story was NOT "debunked". The existance of the 550 metric tons of yellowcake is a FACT. It is only the difference in interpretation. You may claim it is a useless, harmless, "commodity". Others recognize it for what is was - an attempt to acquire the materials with which to become a nuclear power. Sadam was a megalomaniac. He also acquired "harmless" precursor chemicals which were procured under the guise of manufacturing medicine and insecticides - they were turned into chemical weapons and used against the Kurds. I understand that there could be two interpretations, but which is more realistic?

We went into Iraq not because Sadam was buying yellowcake. The fact that he was buying yellowcake was (properly, in my opinion) interpreted by several intelligence communities as evidence Sadam was seeking a nuclear weapons program. Among other specific acts of Sadam's. So don't imply we went into Iraq because Sadam bought a harmless chemical commodity.

 

[ac427cobra]

500 Tons of Uranium Yellowcake Moved From Iraq to Canada-Truth!

U.S. removes 'yellowcake' from Iraq - Conflict in Iraq- msnbc.com

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4e4R1tDm1DQ]YouTube - Saddam's WMDs : the truth[/ame]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMS_9GaQpBs&NR=1]YouTube - Saddam's WMDs Part 2 : the truth[/ame]

 

[James Snover]

I think it might be more accurately said "He couldn't do anything with it up to the point we invaded." He just needed some equipment to be able to use the yellowcake, and he was in a part of the world where terrorists have billions to spend.

Maybe it would be better to ask "What would he do with it if he could do what he wants?"

That question, all on its own merit, is enough for me to justify invading and deposing Hussein.

Jim Snover

snip

No one is arguing that Saddam was a total piece of shit. He demonstrated that time and time again. But the assertion that Saddam was buying and storing yellowcake to make a nuke, and that justified our invasion, is categorically false. The yellowcake that was removed had existed in Iraq for many years specifically because Saddam couldn't do a thing with it.

 

[astrocreep96]

No, I wasn't equating preparation of meth from pseudoephedrine / Sudafed with refining yellowcake. One can be done by an individual in a hotel room; the other requires the resources of a country. (Like Iran and Korea are doing now, and Sadam wanted to do). The story was NOT "debunked". The existance of the 550 metric tons of yellowcake is a FACT. It is only the difference in interpretation. You may claim it is a useless, harmless, "commodity". Others recognize it for what is was - an attempt to acquire the materials with which to become a nuclear power. Sadam was a megalomaniac. He also acquired "harmless" precursor chemicals which were procured under the guise of manufacturing medicine and insecticides - they were turned into chemical weapons and used against the Kurds. I understand that there could be two interpretations, but which is more realistic?

On the issue of interpretation, I'm not suggesting there was some other possible reason for Saddam aquiring yellow cake. I fully agree that Saddam was a megalomaniac and would like to have made nuclear weapons with that yellow cake.

My point is that Saddam was not currently purchasing yellow cake, he did not have the technological capability to refine it in to a usable isotope, and that he was not doing something devious or secretive by buying it. And more specific to this discussion, the existence of that 550 tonnes of uranium was not evidence that Saddam was developing WMD's. The American public was sold on the idea that Iraq was an imminent threat to the US and the yellow cake was a part of that.

We went into Iraq not because Sadam was buying yellowcake. The fact that he was buying yellowcake was (properly, in my opinion) interpreted by several intelligence communities as evidence Sadam was seeking a nuclear weapons program. Among other specific acts of Sadam's. So don't imply we went into Iraq because Sadam bought a harmless chemical commodity.

I think we went into Iraq, partly, not because of a harmless chemical commodity, but because the Bush administration built the yellow cake up to be something it wasn't and currently couldn't be under Saddam's regime.

 

[harry gilbert]

On the issue of interpretation, I'm not suggesting there was some other possible reason for Saddam aquiring yellow cake. I fully agree that Saddam was a megalomaniac and would like to have made nuclear weapons with that yellow cake.

My point is that Saddam was not currently purchasing yellow cake, he did not have the technological capability to refine it in to a usable isotope, and that he was not doing something devious or secretive by buying it. And more specific to this discussion, the existence of that 550 tonnes of uranium was not evidence that Saddam was developing WMD's. The American public was sold on the idea that Iraq was an imminent threat to the US and the yellow cake was a part of that.

(Emphasis mine) I'm glad we agree that Sadam would like to have made nuclear weapons with the yellow cake. He was not "currently purchasing" yellowcake because he had stockpiled 550 metric tons of it.

I think we went into Iraq, partly, not because of a harmless chemical commodity, but because the Bush administration built the yellow cake up to be something it wasn't and currently couldn't be under Saddam's regime.

It wasn't just the yellowcake. Remember, Sadam had committed other offensive and murderous acts (like gassing the Kurds, and killing thousands of his political opponents), and had ignored multiple UN resolutions, and kicked out the UN inspectors. Since there were reports that Sadam wanted to buy or make the equipment to convert the yellowcake into nuclear-weapons-capable material, that was part of the intelligence we had that he was seeking nuclear and biological weapons capabilities in addition to the chemical weapons he had already used. Should we have waited until he set off a nuke or two?

 

[astrocreep96]

(Emphasis mine) I'm glad we agree that Sadam would like to have made nuclear weapons with the yellow cake. He was not "currently purchasing" yellowcake because he had stockpiled 550 metric tons of it.



It wasn't just the yellowcake. Remember, Sadam had committed other offensive and murderous acts (like gassing the Kurds, and killing thousands of his political opponents), and had ignored multiple UN resolutions, and kicked out the UN inspectors. Since there were reports that Sadam wanted to buy or make the equipment to convert the yellowcake into nuclear-weapons-capable material, that was part of the intelligence we had that he was seeking nuclear and biological weapons capabilities in addition to the chemical weapons he had already used. Should we have waited until he set off a nuke or two?

We've sat through at least that while North Korea sets off nukes and launches rockets.:shug: And I don't say that to be contradictory - there are bigger threats, in my opinion, and we've sat around doing nothing. Using Saddam's pursuit of WMD's pales in comparison to what on countries have already accomplished.