Bush of Oz

More than ever, George W. Bush is playing the role of the Wizard of Oz. Just look at the levers he was pulling behind the curtains today.

He had his generals (Pace and Casey) doing a jolly dance to try to draw US voters into fantasyland exactly two weeks before our elections. General Casey went so far as to say that Iraqi forces would be able to take over their country's security in 12 to 18 months. These are the same forces that include army units that sometimes just disappear when they are called into action and the national police force that has been thoroughly infiltrated by the militias.

Pass out the aspirins, folks. It is going to be a very weird two weeks for people who prefer to hear about reality.

(And speaking of reality, this month--with a week yet to go--has seen a total of 90 US troops killed, while 40 Iraqis are now being killed each day by sectarian religious fanatics.)