In reference to LCH's Good reasons to get rid of Saddam , nobody is disputing the brutality of Saddam Hussein. To keep hammering o­n this fact is to bark up the wrong tree. Nobody will be unhappy if he is removed from power.

He has been successfully contained, the pressure exerted o­n him is starting to yield results and he poses no imminent threat either to his neighbours or the main proponents of war.

Setting aside the question of the ulterior motive behind the war, what the pro-war and anti-war proponents disagree o­n is the manner in which he is removed and the cost it entails, not o­nly to the Iraqi people, but more importantly the blow dealt to international diplomacy.

The hatred and destruction will reverberate for years to come. After all, Osama bin Laden didn't wake up o­ne day and decide to hate America. This was many years in the making.

The naked aggression is nothing more than a big bully thrashing a small bully. We may be getting rid of the smaller bully but at the cost of creating a bigger o­ne.

The US has shown utter disrespect for international agreement and rule of law. Instead, it has displayed lack of tolerance, patience and decorum.

It has invaded various countries, overthrown legitimate governments and supported dictators whenever this has served its purposes.

It raises a ruckus if another nation tries to park weapons at its doorstep but has no qualms parking its own weapons in another's backyard, all in the name of national security, national interests and promoting democracy and stability.

These self-righteous proclamations ring hollow when o­ne examines the country's tattered history. So, when they promise a better tomorrow for the Iraqi people, I won't be holding my breath.

What the US and its allies teach the world today is that the end justifies the means and might makes right. This is exactly the kind of philosophy Saddam Hussein holds. So much for exorcising evil from the world. Yet to pro-war proponents who accuse anti-war activists of abetting Saddam, war is a necessary evil.

When o­ne Osama bin Laden hates your guts, you may dismiss him as lunatic, but if you lose to Saddam Hussein in a popularity contest , you'd better start examining your own actions.