uh, well, so much for that plan. okay. i guess if i'm posting more about this, i might as well add that it looks like al-jazeera is getting the saddam story basically right:
[T]he verdict on Saddam is routinely being discussed on al-Jazeera and throughout the Arab media in terms of the Republican election campaign. Not exclusively, but it's an unmistakable theme and colors all the other commentary. The widespread perception that the death sentence was timed to help Bush's party has helped to discredit the trial (which was on shaky ground anyway). The general tone of most commentary I've read and seen has been that Saddam deserved to be found guilty, but that his execution won't much change things; that the entire trial had been handled terribly; and that the timing - in the midst of escalating sectarian warfare in Iraq - could not have been worse. What a classic example of a step being taken for short-sighted domestic political advantage with utter disregard for its impact on vital foreign policy interests. Hey, who cares if you throw fuel onto a sectarian war threatening to burn Baghdad if you can get a bump of a few points for a few days in the polls?if only our own press would look at things with such a critical eye.
