Surprise, surprise, the French and Germans fall all over themselves to agree to "restructuring" Iraq's debt.
There have been various speculations into the motivations for this, from desire to get more of the US taxpayer's $18B than they already are, to a sudden collapse of morale due to our capture of Saddam.
Hmmm. I don't think so. The speed and unanimity of agreement strongly suggest a pre-arrangement in the Frankenreich.
I suspect the calculus went something like this: "If we dig in our heels, they'll just cry 'odious debt' and repudiate all of it. We won't get a centime. This way we'll get some billions back, plus be able to worm our way into at least some negotiations, &tc. Plus, now that we're 'cooperating', we'll be able to go openly into Iraq and, once there, start to maybe reestablish some old ties. This is much more important than flinging mud on Bush again. There's money at stake here."
Fabulous news this morning that Saddam was captured.
Better still, captured alive.
Better still, captured cowering in a little hole in the ground.
The symbolic significance of his capture in the Arab world is tremendous. Almost as important is the manner of his capture. In a shame culture like Arab culture, the fact that he himself was unwilling to resist and die for his cause, or even to commit suicide, after he had been asking others to die for him, erases any scrap of legitimacy from anything he ever did.
He is revealed to ALL, including even the most doubting Arab, as a coward, a sham, a fraudster, a liar. Completely morally despicable.
This is a great day in the history of Iraq! Long Live Free Iraq!
This is a great day in the history of the world. A slimy dictator is brought to the justice he so richly deserved. Paying attention Syria? Paying attention North Korea? Paying attention Islamofascists? The day of the dictators is drawing to a close. Crawl into your holes. We'll find you and drag you out into the sunlight of the world.
A big OUTSTANDING! to the US troops who pulled this off. I don't mean just the officers, but the troops. You've made us all damn proud, soldiers. Thank. You.