GEORGE Bush is a man who likes a short sentence. Which is not to say the President of the United States reduces ideas to bite-sized chunks. Or maybe it is.
Either way, during the course of his first 24 hours in Sydney, there were plenty of efficient exclamations. Like the exchange on the tarmac as Deputy Prime Minister Mark Vaile inquired how things were going in Iraq. "We're kicking ass," he declared.
His glibness does not help. I don't need a healer in cheif, but I don't need a Texan in Cheif either. Headlines would seem to disagree with the "Kicking Ass" asessment:
From today:
At least 19 dead in latest Iraq violence
A roadside bomb attack killed 13 Iraqi civilians in Baghdad suburb today and three separate attacks has resulted in the deaths of six US soldiers. (today's Ireland.com)
Parliament reconvenes in Iraq
Returning lawmakers get off to slow start, spending much of the session bickering but making little progress on legislation. (today's LA Times)
11 Killed in Baghdad Bomb Blast
Iraqi authorities say a bomb blast in Baghdad's mostly Shi'ite Sadr City district has killed at least 11 people and wounded about 20 others. (Voice of America, today)
Iraq's war of the warlords
September 4, 2007
WHEN the radical Shi'ite cleric Moqtada Sadr called last week for a freeze on his Mahdi Army's operations, it might have been tempting to take it as a positive step toward reducing violence and promoting stability in Iraq. But even if his directive is heeded by most components of the far-from-unitary Mahdi Army, any such timeout will only be a tactical pause to let Sadr's forces regroup. It hardly portends a transformation of the basic situation in Iraq (Boston Globe)