WHERE ARE SADDAM'S CARGO SHIPS?

Am I the only one who remembers the creepy story floated in the run-up to the Iraq war, about Saddam having shadowy cargo ships that might already contain WMD's, waiting for a chance to strike U.S. shores? The NPR report I heard stated that the ships had been in radio silence but that authorities were tracking them. I haven't been able to find much about these supposed terrorism ships since then, and I'm beginning to think that I was tripping from a bad veggie burger. But it seems to me to be another spectacular case of fearmongering. . .

Unless, of course, they're still out there, waiting to strike when we least expect it. . .

Um, yeah. Hmmm.

MORE: Found some stuff. The story broke in mid-February but then nobody seems to have followed up on it. Here's the Guardian article, and, for something a little different, a CBN article with a nifty graphic and "White House" in the by-line. Here's one skeptical blogger's take as well.

People really should have ripped this story to shreds, but I suppose they were otherwise occupied. Now we can look back with embarrassment at how all of those stories influenced our views. . .

MORE: This is just one instance of the general problem of the missing Iraqi WMD's, but I have to admit that it's the most comical. The original reports claimed that these ships could be the "smoking gun," and that the reason why British and U.S. officials hadn't boarded the ships was because they feared environmental damage: so you had the severe but mysterious threat (linked to well-publicized fears about the danger emanating from cargo ships), you had the claim that this could be the missing piece of information that would prove the administration right, and you had a popular social concern (the environment) that could make Bush look greener than he ever has been or ever will be. And, most importantly, perhaps, you had a press corps that ATE IT UP and then FAILED TO FOLLOW UP ON THE STORY, dag nabbit !!!!. The best recent on line commentary on the missing WMD's can be found at: Calpundit, Daily Kos, TAPPED,The Agonist, Jane Finch, and, of course, Whiskey Bar.