As the drums beat louder for bombing Baghdad, it might be wise to ask what we're fighting for. Most of the official reasons are absurd on the face of it. Do we need to incapacitate this dictator? Then why do we tolerate and even coddle dozens of others? Is it important that Americans be allowed to inspect? Maybe, but why should Iraq be bombed because our feeling are hurt ("everybody else was invited")?

The only compelling reason offered to destroy Iraq is that it has, and is willing to use, unconventional weapons of mass destruction. But if that's reason enough to destroy Hussein's palaces, then Washington, D.C. should have been leveled long ago.

Take our own malignant bio-warfare policy (please). In the 1940's, representatives of Maryland's Fort Detrick met with Japanese "researchers" in Tokyo. The Japanese had become experts on bio-warfare during WWII by conducting experiments on Russian, Chinese, and American POWs.

The U.S. granted these experts immunity for their war crimes in exchange for the data they collected. American researchers knew they could not obtain similar data in their own laboratories "because of scruples attached to human experimentation."

But immunity wasn't enough for Japanese Mengeles; we also paid them $250,000 for their data-"a mere pittance compared with the actual cost of the studies," one Fort Detrick official noted.

Over the next few decades the U.S. tested bio-warfare "simulants" on American soldiers and civilians. They released supposedly harmless bacteria over the Pennsylvania Turnpike, in the New York subway, and off the coast of California. At least one civilian death can be traced to these tests.

In 1970 the Pentagon decided that existing bio-weapons weren't good enough, and set out to develop their own bug. In testimony before the Committee on Appropriations, the deputy director of the DOD explained what they had in mind: "... eminent biologists believe that within a period of five to ten years it would be possible to produce a synthetic biological agent, an agent that does not naturally occur and for which no natural immunity could have been acquired."

At this point Rep. Robert Sikes was intrigued. "Are we doing any work in this field?" he asked. "Why not? Lack of money or lack of interest?"

The deputy director replied: "Certainly not lack of interest." Then he quoted a price: $10 million.

The Department of Defense got their $10 million.

Not only has our government done a good job building its own biological and chemical weapons stockpiles, but we've been happy to share it with others, often for a modest financial remuneration.

Which brings us to Iraq. Pathogens we've sold to Iraq include: bacillus anthracis (anthrax), clostridium botulinum (botulism), and clostridium perfringes (gas gangrene).

Senator Donald Riegle noted in 1994, "In addition, several shipments of e. coli and genetic materials, human and bacterial DNA, were shipped directly to the Iraq Atomic Energy Commission." The U.S. company, American Type Culture Collection, was the provider, under export licenses granted by the Commerce Department.

Riegle reported: "Records show that during this period [1985-93], pathogenic, meaning 'disease producing,' toxigenic, meaning 'poisonous,' and other materials, were exported to Iraq pursuant to application and licensing by the U.S. Department of Commerce. These exported biological materials were not attenuated or weakened and were capable of reproduction."

During the Gulf War, when U.S. soldiers blew up the weapons depot at Kamisiyah, toxic fallout "may have exposed 100,000 troops," according to the Pentagon's belated assessment. What they haven't mentioned, and probably never will, is that at least some of the fallout came from our own deadly, unconventional weapons policy.

There are emergency actions being planned in Seattle to protest in the event a bombing campaign begins. If the bombing is announced between midnight and noon, meet at 5 PM, if it's announced between noon and midnight, meet at noon the following day at the Federal Building, 2nd and Marion, downtown, to participate in a demonstration sponsored by Fellowship of Reconciliation (206-789-5565), American Friends Service Committee (Arlis at 206-632-0500 ext 112), Seattle Women Act for Peace, and many other groups.

Also, there's an upcoming prayer vigil on Friday--check out the Activist Calendar in this issue for more details.