Thursday, November 01, 2007

Thursday Leads To Friday

And we're almost there. I had the chance to stick around the house longer than normal this morning, keeping an appointment with the pest control guy.  So, I kept the TV on and I'm really liking MSNBC's new look.  The lighting seems much better, the cameras much crisper and the graphic look is great.  I'd noticed that Countdown had a pretty slick new look this week, but the daytime programs REALLY show off the new space. 


So, what's there to talk about tonight? More than we can possibly work through without wearing out my tired fingers. We'll begin with Iraq.  Are things really looking up, over there?


A turning point for Iraq?



In general I think discussions of turning points in Iraq -- even in retrospect, much less forward-looking -- are over-hyped; Iraq has been, if nothing else, a slow-moving process, much of it predictable based on the failures of governance by US and Iraqi leadership. Spencer Ackerman takes a look at the current landscape, though, and wonders whether the coming weeks might give a clearer picture of where Iraq is heading for the next few years: [...]



The "next few years"??!?!?  I can't bring myself to think about it in terms of "years". 


Iraqi Civilian Death Toll Drops



...The Los Angeles Times posits some darker reasons, too. Sectarian segregation is growing, with once-mixed neighborhoods now fully Sunni or Shiite, so opportunities for violence are decreasing. Baghdad is also emptying out, with scared civilians fleeing the [...]



Screech....brakes squeeling.  Not so fast on that optimism express..


Rise In Iraqi Deaths Undercuts Administration’s Claims Of ‘Momentum’ In The War



Throughout this month, the administration has been touting a “trend” of decreasing violence in Iraq. The “violence is thankfully coming down,” said White House spokesperson Dana Perino on Oct. 18. This morning, Gen. Raymond Odierno held a news briefing on the war in Iraq, declaring, “I believe we have achieved some momentum.” To bolster this [...]



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