http://blogcritics.org/ A sinister cabal of superior bloggers on music, books, film, popular culture, politics, and technology - updated continuously. en Copyright 2005 by the authors Fri, 9 Apr 2004 16:16:34 EDT http://backend.userland.com/rss Blogcritics.org custom software http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/04/09/123219.php#comment-57155 From what I have read from Cole, it would seem that there are a fair number of militias running around Iraq that could make trouble. There are even a couple of members of the IGC which employ militiamen. SCIRI (Sistani's group) has the Badr Corps attached to it. Ruling over Iraq in the short term seems to require balancing these various forces and playing them off against each other. Without disarming them one by one, these seems about the best we can hope for. This may not fit to well with any conception of democracy we are familiar with. 57155@blogcritics.org Fri, 9 Apr 2004 16:16:34 EDT http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/04/09/123219.php#comment-57117 Thanks David, and I hope we can accomodate Saddam's need for company very quickly - they're both political murderers. 57117@blogcritics.org Fri, 9 Apr 2004 12:56:34 EDT http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/04/09/123219.php#comment-57116 Good summation of the situation in Iraq Eric. Sadr is, at best, a gangster who sees an opportunity to take power in Iraq and become the next Saddam. He talks like Saddam, he intimidates like Saddam (note the taking of hostages), he even hides behind his followers (women and children too) like Saddam. His militia must be crushed completely and this guy, at the very least, must be thrown in jail. I hear that Saddam could use someone to talk to these days. David 57116@blogcritics.org Fri, 9 Apr 2004 12:53:52 EDT