tony

Dr Roger<BR>Of course the war will be different -<BR>last time you had a just cause (fighting the agressor) but because you didn't get into &quot;hand to hand&quot; fighting the regime and Saddam survived. This time there will have to be troops there - probably for a very long time and with all that entails.<BR><BR>But whats worse is - Why ? Whats' the rush. No-one - least of all Bush and his cronies (oil war mongers all) have told us let alone convinced me , that war is necessary . A tyrant he is - but he's not a threat to the US, its soverignty, or its economy. SH could not fight his way out of a wet paper bag , let alone threaten your great republic.<BR><BR>No theres something else to it all - and not savoury at all. If the US was serious , there are dozens of countries headed by tyrants and oppressive regimes (including a great many freindly regimes of the US), all of whom have repeatedly broken UN resolutions, all of which have WMD etc<BR>- but narry a whisper about them (who include Saudi, China, N Korea, Pakistan and yep, also Israel) Total hypocrisy ! Tough on Iraq who has very little if anything -or if it has it must be very very well hidden because all your services FBI, NAS, CIA etc etc still don't know where it is. And then - soft on N Korea - who willing admit they have WMD and nucelar at that...<BR>Get real guys - Bush has an agenda and its not WMD, justice, human rights, democracy or any of the other cited celestial ideals. <BR><BR>This war may well not be short and easy - I heard that one in Vietnam in 1962 - the World Power taking on a bunch of peasants in black pajamas. Sure. War has a nasty way of heading into all sorts of unplanned and unforeseen directions . We shall see.<BR><BR>+++ <BR>

kismetchimera

I am also going to europe in June with my daughter and my 11 years old grandaughter...Once awhile I think about the possibilities of a war breaking while we are in Paris.... and the possible consequences involved... with larget muslim populations living there...But to tell the true I feel that if is MY TIME TO GO, not matter where I am....than che sera sera....

jr

I think you may be safer in Europe from terrorists than in the US. The fact that there has been no terrorist attacks in America since 9/11 either means there won't be anymore or they are just waiting for the Gulf war to start. In my opinion.<BR>If you are worried about being treated poorly in Europe you can always put a old Clinton/Gore sticker on your bag.

xxx

It will probably be safer in France and Germany, because they've been opposing the war. But after the war is successful I'm sure F&amp;G will try to reap the benefits.<BR><BR>One thing that should be put to rest is the lie about the war being about oil. The US gets less than 10% of its oil from the mideast. If the US wanted cheap access to oil all it would have to do is topple Chavez in Venezuala.

BeeGee

I believe this message board's primary function is to discuss travel related items. Those who wish to argue the pros and cons of current US policy may be better served using the message boards found on the NY Times, Washington Post or any number of other domestic or foreign forums. As for the question at hand, Security is and will remain tight. I also suspect that most Europeans (yes even the French who do get a bad rap now and again) will treat you and your family with respect and kindness. In my many vists across the pond, I have certainly encountered less rude treatment than I experince every day driving to work in the US.

beachbum

Thank you, xxx, for taking a stab at my question. But I still don't get it. The supposition that one would be more safe in Europe in the event of war implies that war somehow threatens those living in the US. Yet, the reason many offer in opposition to a war is that Iraq is no threat. Isn't there a contradiction there somewhere?

Paule

The original question is one I'm thinking about, too, and my general feeling is that travel itself won't really be affected, There may be more anti-American sentiment, seen in demonstrations or grafitti on a wall, but there shouldn't be anything that would directly impinge upon one's travelling in Europe. I've found that most people I've met while travelling have dealt with me as an individual, even during times of high anti-American sentiment. They may complain about my government, but they distinguish me from my government. <BR><BR>My own anxiety is travelling by plane these days, and it's an understandable fear, given the nature of the terrorist strikes. But airport security has improved a lot since 9/11, and the general odds about planes being used as a terrorist attack is pretty slim. So I can say that, despite a qualm or two, I feel pretty comfortable about travelling in upcoming months.<BR><BR>And I really do hope we manage to avoid a war!