SOUNDING BOARD is an outlet for opinions on good and crazy things going on at home (wherever I may be). All are welcome. You are not expected to bring anything except your common sense & sense of humor.
'If the automobile had followed the same development cycle as the computer, a Rolls-Royce would today cost $100, get one million miles to the gallon, and explode once a year, killing everyone inside.'
-Robert X. Cringely (from geek wisdom)
SOUNDING BOARD
Tuesday, January 28, 2003
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The issue of trust and the weapons inspection
Amidst the tension in the Security Council over the progress report covering the work of the UN weapons inspectors, Hans Blix expressed frustration with Iraq's failure to make Iraqi scientists available for unmonitored interviews. Blix said Iraq had provided him with an incomplete list of nearly 500 Iraqi scientists associated with Iraq's weapons programs, a far cry from the list of more than 3,500 individuals gathered from previous inspections. To this, Blix remarked, "Inspection... is a process of verification for the purpose of creating confidence. It is not built on the premise of trust. Rather, it is designed to lead to trust" (Washington Post 28 January 2003, p. A01).
You don't have to read the blow-by-blow accounts everyday to get the sense of distrust by the US-led council of war, on one hand, and Iraq, on the other. The inadequate cooperation of Iraq to the inspections also seem to signify a certain level of distrust of Iraq on the independence of the inspectors to some hawkish members of the Security Council. Extending the statement of Mr. Blix, it should be understood as, "Right now, you don't trust us, we don't trust you. But cooperating fully may convince us to have a certain level of trust to keep this inspection on track. So let us interview those scientists in private, damn it."
Maybe the last line should not be mentioned at all.
posted by Allan at 11:59 AM (GMT+8)
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