"Dave Hall" wrote in message
...


Then there is Italy and Australia. Turkey provided some support as
well. How many countries does it take to be considered a "coalition" by
your definition?

Turkey wanted to send troops, against our wishes, because we felt it would
cause friction with the Kurds, remember? Turkey was ****ed off at us for
months. If I recall, they didn't even want us using their air space.



A coalition is NOT:
1) 40 countries whose sole contribution was an agreement not to publicly
criticize our plan, in return for which they'd get some sort of
financial
aid, or not have existing aid reduced or withdrawn.

And I can find this in which dictionary? Or are you speculating again?

You want a dictionary which tells you what a word does NOT mean???

Now, a question: When asked about sending troops to Iraq, Colombia
negotiated more aid so they could drop more herbicides to kill coca plants
and make farmers' children ill. I have no idea what WE got in return, unless
they agreed to vote our way in the U.N. Do you consider Colombia part of the
coalition?



So, where does the number 40 come from, Dave? What is YOUR definition of
a
"coalition"?

A group of countries united toward a common goal.

But, what about the specific "40" figure? That's what your president is
claiming.



Since we did not "go it alone", it was not unilateral. Therefore your
premise is flawed.

In terms of sheer numbers of soldiers placed in harm's way from the
first
day of battle, the British were the only ones who contributed, in
addition
to the aforementioned medical contribution by Spain. If you'll read some
history going back to World War II, and as far forward as the present
day,
you'll run across the term "the special relationship" used by every U.S.
president and every British prime minister. Because of that "special
relationship", it'll be a cold day in hell when we and the British don't
cooperate.

Does a coalition consist of 2-1/2?


Does it really matter?

It certainly does matter, if a large portion of the American people believe
that 40 countries are behind this. No aspect of a war should be built on
lies.