The chick got in the way

Whatever you can say about the “embeds,” they are often there to hear soldiers say stupid stuff, like the Marine who shot a woman for the crime of standing near an Iraqi soldier and said “I’m sorry, but the chick got in the way.”

WaPo on the Bush regime’s plans to replace all Iraqi textbooks (You have 7 doubles of Saddam Hussein. 3 are assassinated by Zionist agents...) According to one of the Post’s sources, these books teach Iraqis from an early age nationalism and “the bearing of arms and the constant readiness to fight enemies”. And we’re planning to change all that. I see where France might finally have a role. (I know, I know, but it’s so easy.)

By the way, we know that Afghanistan is now the world’s #1 opium producer. Guess who’s behind Ecstacy? Israel, evidently.

Kinda interesting Robert Fisk report, in which he goes all Sherlock Holmes on a destroyed US tank. On the barrel he finds written “Cojone EH.” Quote: “There was a little difficulty in translating cojones as "balls". We wondered why "EH" – if they were indeed the tank commander's initials – would name his tank after only one testicle. The Iraqis wanted to know why a soldier would call his tank a ball at all.”

Also today saw a BBC report on that friendly fire incident, filmed with blood on the camera lens. Yech. No doubt you can see it on their website, but the text (from a slightly later broadcast than I saw, I think) is here.

Favorite quote “I am sorry to be so excitable. I am bleeding through the ear.”

The Guardian says that the US has secretly flown future Iraqi puppet leader Ahmad Chalabi into the country. Usually when Chalabi flies secretly to another country, it’s to escape bank fraud charges, so this’ll be a nice change of pace.

I also hear that the US is planning to divide Iraq into three zones: leaded, unleaded and diesel.

The US population in prisons and jails has surpassed 2 million. I believe the 2 millionth customer got a free tattoo touting the superiority of the race or ethnic group of his choice. (The 2m. doesn’t include juveniles, illegal immigrants, people in military prisons or indeed Guantanamo).

Under cover of our war, Israel just opened the very first settlement in Arab East Jerusalem (with government approval).

Story about an army chaplain who will only let soldiers take a bath if they listen through a long sermon first and then get baptized.

Still no word as to why that colonel was relieved of his command. The more they don’t talk, the more interested I am. Too bad I can’t say the same about the journalists.