Going to war without France is like going deer hunting without an accordion.

How many French men do you need to defend Paris?  Nobody knows, it's never been tried.

I couldn't help myself.....now the more serious facts................but first a comment:  The US has tried to remain united with Europe, but the same way two cannot argue if one is not willing, two cannot stay together if one is not willing.

It has been a French bank (what a shock!), BNP, that has sent money for the oil-for-food program to companies that were not supposed to get it, and that were shipping prohibited goods to Iraq.  A series of investigations have found that Saddam, as Iraqi president, used oil smuggling, bribes and kickbacks to generate up to $21.3 billion or more in illegal revenue while under international sanctions from 1991-2003.  The main players on this illegal game were France (surprise again), Russia and Syria.   Saddam used kickback revenues to make $25,000 payments to families of Palestinian suicide bombers who carried out attacks on Israel.In addition to Oil-for-Food schemes, Iraq brought in over $8 billion in illicit oil deals with Jordan, Syria, Turkey and Egypt through smuggling or illegal pumping through pipelines during the full period that sanctions were in place from 1991-2003. Russian and French companies were singled out by the regime for special treatment

During the war in Iraq, the French 'serious' press reported that Basra was a martyr city, American soldiers were guilty of war crimes, and civilians were being massacred.   But if the intention was really to massacre civilians, no American soldier would have needed to risk his/her life.  The US military has the capability to be done with massacring in a few minutes with a few bombs.  But they were not used.  On the contrary, the army took extra risks  just to protect civilians.

A French public opinion showed that 25% of the population preferred Saddam won the war.   so 25% of the French prefer a sadistic dictator to the country that saved their butts from Germany (twice!)

The US keeps being blamed for the Iraqi children that have been deprived from food because of the food-for-oil program.  The truth is that it has been the UN big shots and some European companies the ones that have profited from this program, as well as Saddam himself.  No American company, no US government official has been involved in this scandal.

Removing Saddam from power was a big threat to the French economy.  Since the 70s France had relied heavily on the sales of armament to Iraq to sustain its economy.   At some points in time, 75% of French exports were going to Iraq.   The exports included sending French engineers to train Iraqis in the production of nuclear weapons.  This is  a reason big enough to oppose a war, any war.

Saddam had to launch a genocidal campaign against the Marsh Arabs in southern Iraq to make the region safe for the French engineers.

Top 8 Reasons why Europeans don't like the US :

8 - The Oscars - Why does everybody know Oscar and nobody knows......anybody knows the names of the others?

7 - McDonald's - If everybody in Europe thinks American food is garbage, why are McDonald's always full? (it's a given here that some Europeans think all American food is McDonnald's food).

6 - Gas Prices - Why the h... is gas so cheap in the US compared to Europe?  Why can Americans afford big SUVs and we cannot?

5- If Americans are so dumb and Europeans are so smart.  How come Europe is always falling behind with respect to the US?

4 -The System -.  Europeans keep saying that the European system is better than the American one.  But why the h... do we see more Europeans moving to the US than Americans moving to Europe?

3 - The US military.  For years Europe has cut on defense spending to focus on social spending because it counted on the US army for protection, while at the same time criticizing the amount of money the US spent on defense.  And now, why the h... won't Americans let Europeans decide what to do with their Army?

2 - The middle East - why do those Israelis listen when the US speaks and pay no attention when Europe speaks?

1 - Europe is no longer the center of the planet.  No longer the ruler of the world.  This part is now played by the US, and the US wasn't even trying.  And this is something Europe, especially France, cannot swallow.  Its pride.

Europe has criticized the US for involving itself in too many world issues, playing the world's police.  When this has changed, Europe has criticized the US for not getting involved enough in world issues and being self-centered.  Europe has not given the % of involvement that would be just right.

Europe criticized the US for not getting involved in the war in Yugoslavia arguing the US wanted no part of it because there was no oil.  Europe criticized the US when it joined arguing the US had no business in Europe.

Europe keeps blaming the US embargo on Cuba for the poor conditions of the Cuban people.  Europe didn't have a problem maintaining business with Cuba.  I guess if the US is not there, nothing can be accomplish, no matter who is there.

From Le Monde founder , 1944 - "The Americans are a real danger to France, a very different one from the danger that Germany or Russia represent...."   It seems France would have been better off as a Nazi territory than freed by the Americans.