Update on Najaf... it seems the cease-fire and pull out of the American forces has ended within a day of its being signed due to the fire from insurgents as mentioned in my last post.

Also, it seems Ashcroft and Ridge are at odds over not only the threat level indicated by all this new information on a terrorist attack this summer... but THE DEPARTMENTS ARE NOT COOPERATING WITH EACH OTHER. What this indicates to me is that the "legal barriers" that were blamed by the right-wing upon Gorelick (9/11 committee member) which were so wonderfully torn down by the Patriot Act had nothing to do with the way these people deal with each other. You want your department to take credit because in a bureaucracy that means you get a pay raise... these people exist as members of a bureaucratic system and not as Americans working to prevent terrorism. In other words, don't expect that little Bert picture to change over to Ernie any time soon as Ridge won't let Ashcroft take the pay hike in his place.

Also, it seems the comment in my last post on Brahimi delaying his list by two weeks was potentially inaccurate as it seems the UN resolution itself is what is on the table to be delayed that long. What that amounts to is, of course, the precise delay mentioned in my last post... but let's not jump to put all the blame on Brahimi just yet.