That’s my response to the news that Human Rights Watch is actually criticizing the Iraqi government for mining mosques. Even more amazingly, they almost manage to get through the entire story without criticizing the US, other than for using mines in the initial Gulf War.

If the tape of Saddam being cheered in the streets being shown right now is a recent one, I’d bet it’s not Saddam. He does have doubles, as we’ve been told for months.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t matter whether it’s real, so much as whether the Iraqi people, and particularly Baghdad residents believe that it’s real, or at least now have to doubt that he’s out of power. This is to a large extent a psychological war, and this tape will lengthen the war and make it more difficult, so from that standpoint, it’s excellent propaganda. It’s one of the first smart things that I’ve seen the regime do, and I’m surprised they haven’t done it sooner.

[Update at 10:38 AM PST]

Dave over at Greeblie blog points out in the comments that Saddam looks kind of young here. Because of the smoke in the distance, it’s either a very recent tape, or a very old one (i.e., from the Gulf War, when we were bombing the snot out of Baghdad with much less precise munitions).

That possibility could be eliminated if we knew whether that monument of Iraqi-Palestinian solidarity existed back then.

[One more thought at 11:09 AM PST]

I would think that the primary audience for this would be the inhabitants of Baghdad (though he may be trying to hold what remains of the rest of the country together as well). But I thought the power was out in the city, so who’s going to see it?

[Yet another update to the last one at 11:40 AM PST]

Now the BBC is reporting that the power is back on, at least in some parts of the city.

Many “Palestinians” are marching for Saddam.

(Link requires registration)

I was going to post something about the story I heard on NPR last night, about the international lawyers who somehow, absurdly, think that it will not be possible for us to administer Iraq, or control its oil, because it would be “against international law,” but Den Beste has done it already, and there’s little left to be said.

Except that it reminds me (as many things do) of a Simpsons episode. The family is trying to escape some predicament, and are in the car getting ready to roll, but for some reason (I don’t recall why) Homer doesn’t have his driver’s license.

Lisa cries, “Dad! We can’t go–you don’t have your driver’s license.” Homer, dismayed, nonetheless grits his teeth and mutters, “Well, I’m going to try anyway.”

He turns the key, the car starts, and off he goes.

Elated, he cries, “Hey, it worked!”

I was going to post something about the story I heard on NPR last night, about the international lawyers who somehow, absurdly, think that it will not be possible for us to administer Iraq, or control its oil, because it would be “against international law,” but Den Beste has done it already, and there’s little left to be said.

Except that it reminds me (as many things do) of a Simpsons episode. The family is trying to escape some predicament, and are in the car getting ready to roll, but for some reason (I don’t recall why) Homer doesn’t have his driver’s license.

Lisa cries, “Dad! We can’t go–you don’t have your driver’s license.” Homer, dismayed, nonetheless grits his teeth and mutters, “Well, I’m going to try anyway.”

He turns the key, the car starts, and off he goes.

Elated, he cries, “Hey, it worked!”

I was going to post something about the story I heard on NPR last night, about the international lawyers who somehow, absurdly, think that it will not be possible for us to administer Iraq, or control its oil, because it would be “against international law,” but Den Beste has done it already, and there’s little left to be said.

Except that it reminds me (as many things do) of a Simpsons episode. The family is trying to escape some predicament, and are in the car getting ready to roll, but for some reason (I don’t recall why) Homer doesn’t have his driver’s license.

Lisa cries, “Dad! We can’t go–you don’t have your driver’s license.” Homer, dismayed, nonetheless grits his teeth and mutters, “Well, I’m going to try anyway.”

He turns the key, the car starts, and off he goes.

Elated, he cries, “Hey, it worked!”

Courtesy of Lileks, I’ve added a new logo up there on the left, to represent American values, as seen by an anticipatory Iraqi.

Right on.

Of course, he wouldn’t have said that if he’d ever tried rum.

Michael Kelly was killed in a vehicle rollover in Iraq. He wrote many great columns over the years. Here is his last dispatch, from yesterday.

This is truly a terrible loss to all who admire great journalism.

[Update at 10:50 AM PST]

It strikes me that I gave him short shrift (partly because I didn’t have any experience of him in that way) but he was supposedly a great editor as well. There are some good initial obits over at The Corner (just keep scrolling).

[Update at 1:20 PM PST]

It didn’t take long for Peggy Noonan to come up with very moving thoughts on the death of Michael Kelly.

He [sic] remains will come home now soon enough, and I hope what comes home is met with an honor guard, for he has earned it, and a flag, for he loved his country, and a snapped salute, for that is one way to show respect. And maybe it would be good if this son of Washington–born there, educated there, drawn to its great industry, politics and the reporting of it–were to find his final rest nearby, among those who fought with distinction for America. Michael Kelly went at great peril to be with U.S. troops, and he fell among US troops, while trying to tell the story of U.S. troops. So perhaps his final rest should be with U.S. troops, in Arlington, where we put so many heroes.

While the war was much shorter, he may become known as this war’s Ernie Pyle, but I think that such an assessment would dramatically overshadow his many journalistic accomplishments.

Michael Kramer lays out the possible reasons that we haven’t been attacked with chemical or bioweapons. My vote is that Saddam can’t give the order, due to lack of consciousness, or acquisition of ambient temperature, and that no one else is willing to.

The least likely explanation, of course, is that they don’t have them.

Michael Kramer lays out the possible reasons that we haven’t been attacked with chemical or bioweapons. My vote is that Saddam can’t give the order, due to lack of consciousness, or acquisition of ambient temperature, and that no one else is willing to.

The least likely explanation, of course, is that they don’t have them.