Check out this idiotic and hideous advertisement paid for by MoveOn.org.

The commercial begins with a little girl picking a daisy, counting as she plucks the petals. The deep male voiceover says:

War with Iraq.

Maybe it'll end quickly, maybe not. Maybe it will spread.

Maybe extremists will take over countries with nuclear weapons.

Maybe, the unthinkable...[nuclear explosion]

Maybe that's why Americans are saying to President Bush:

Let the inspections work.

This ad is apparently based on a 1964 presidential campaign ad:

THE ORIGINAL DAISY AD The original "Daisy" TV ad was produced by Lyndon Johnson's presidential campaign against Barry Goldwater in 1964. The ad implied that if Goldwater were elected he might take the United States into nuclear war. It ran only once.

Now then...here's the logic of the MoveOn.org people:

The United States claims that the threat posed by Iraqi possession of weapons of mass destruction justifies a US preventive attack. Leaving aside for the moment the deeply troubling legal and foreign policy implications of such an attack and the unsubstantiated suggestion that there is an imminent threat, an attack would increase the threat posed by weapons of mass destruction.

Oh, okay. Military intervention to disarm a dictator who is rabidly trying to acquire nuclear weapons will increase their potential use. Huh?

Looking into the future, a US initiated, unprovoked war against Iraq could spur increased proliferation of nuclear weapons. Not wanting to be left defenseless in the face of such threats, some countries will respond to the aggressive Bush posture by reaching for - not rejecting - nuclear weapons.

News flash: Petty dictatorial thugs would be "reaching" for nuclear weaponry despite the posture of the United States. Dictators who rule via military strength, guess what?, always want more strength. This is more of the soft-headed pap that assumes that all countries act in relation to the behavior of the U.S.

I ask, as I always do (and as is always the precursor to deafening silence): What should be done?

Nothing? The moment the threat of military pressure is let up, Iraq would begin to drag their feet and stonewall the inspectors. The only reason the inspectors are there, the only way to ensure their continued presence, is by the threat of military force. If you doubt this, you're basically living in a fantasy land.

So would you remove the military presence from the Gulf? Lift the sanctions? Leave Iraq complete to themselves? If so, brace yourself for a rerun of the North Korean debacle. Get ready for an Iraq armed with nuclear weaponry. And get ready for the spread of nuclear technology throughout the Middle East and throughout the world.

Now try watching the video again, but turn the sound down and try reading this instead:

Iraq with nuclear weapons.

Maybe it will happen soon, maybe later. But when it does, the technology will spread.

Maybe extremists will take over countries with nuclear weapons, or get them from countries that do.

Maybe, the unthinkable...[nuclear explosion]

Maybe that's why Americans are saying to President Bush:

We support your stance on Iraq.