I found UIUC senior and Iraq war veteran Travis Buchanan’s comments that Saddam could have easily disposed of weapons of mass destruction in the six months before our troops arrived disturbing. He reflects the ongoing misinformation by U.S. Army officials who still try to defend the WMD lie used to justify an illegal invasion. Although Iraq did possess WMDs given to them by U.S. officials prior to and during the first Gulf War, Generals Powell, Scwartzkopf, Horner and Dick Cheney ordered those destroyed beginning on Dec. 10, 1990, according to Schwartzkopf’s autibiography “It Doesn’t Take a Hero.” We initiated the destruction with Iraq and UNSCOM officials, completing the destruction of Iraq’s WMDs by the late 1990’s. Simply, Iraq did not possess WMDs when we invaded them. President Bush, Vice President Cheney, and Secretary of State Powell each knew that fact. UNSCOM chief Hans Blix has made that very clear.

I must ask, as a U.S. Army WMD expert, if Travis completed decontamination procedures of Iraqi and U.S. uranium munitions contaminated equipment, facilities and terrain as required by U.S. Army Regulation 700-48. I also pray that he and his unit members have received mandatory medical care for their own probable exposures.

Today, U.S. victory has never been defined. Iraq never posed any offensive threat to the United States and was not involved in Sept. 11. Although President Bush wishes we can, we have absolutely no right to tell Iraqis how to govern themselves. With a U.S. death count of more than 16,000 and a casualty count approaching 400,000, sending more troops into Iraq will only result in more casualties. The idea that we can bomb and shoot Iraqis who oppose our illegal invasion to give them “freedom” is wrong.

Captain (Dr.) Doug Rokke

330th Medical Brigade, U.S. Army Reserve