Did He Blink?

Could Saddam's fall from power at the hands of the U.S. have had a beneficial (and unforeseen by this author) benefit? Libya opens the door to disarm and dismantle WMD production technology. If this is true, it is great news and it may also mark improving relations with the state. If nothing else, that particular door is left wide open, if not marked with big neon signs:

If Libya follows through, Bush said, "its good faith can be returned."

The president said the United States and Britain would make sure Libya kept its word, given its "troubled history," but he added, "As we have found with other nations, old hostilities do not need to go on forever."

Has the bully been taught how to behave?

UPDATE: Richard Murphy, Assistant Secretary of State during the Reagan Administration is quoted in the Reuters piece, which reads:

. . .the U.S. invasion of Iraq "might have been a factor" in the Libyan decision to give up its weapons of mass destruction but noted Tripoli had sought better relations for several years.

"I would view this as a further step in the Libyan effort to restore itself as a country interested in normal, good relations .... rather than interpreting it as a move to protect itself from a Bush policy of preemption," Murphy said.

If nothing else, Khadaffi knows when he needs to deal. But the timing of the announcement is quite. . .interesting.