The Pentagon finally admits that Iraq (or, as the report says, "some elements of the situation in Iraq) faces a civil war. The report comes to conclusions similar to those of the Iraq NIE, saying, basically, that things are really bad and "big challenges remain." Well, then.
The most telling information, though, is not the number of attacks but rather the measures of civil society. I think we're basically past the "blame the media" point, wherein the news apparently was hiding the true utopia in Iraq, but at this point I'd argue it's actually the reverse: that by focusing primarily on attack numbers, the media obscures the fact that Iraq as a whole has ceased to be any kind of functional state. I mean, how often do you see this kind of information on your TV:
[J]udges who don't succumb to the myriad threats against them often fear handing down guilty verdicts against defendants with ties to insurgent groups or militias . . . the Iraqi prison system remains overcrowded, and correctional services are "increasingly infiltrated by criminal organizations and militias" . . . The economy, too, is crippling Iraq's ability to recover . . . Inflation in 2006 averaged 50 percent. And while estimates of unemployment range from 13.4 percent to as high as 60 percent, a January 2007 survey by the U.S. military's Multi-National Division-Baghdad found that only 16 percent of the city's residents say that their current income meets their basic needs. And the daily power situation remains dismal . . . the number of daily hours of power in Baghdad was 6.6 in the last quarter of 2006 . . .Those are stunning numbers. Inflation at 50%. Fully 84% of the population don't have the income to provide for basic needs. Fewer than 7 hours of power every day (which isn't just a matter of refrigeration and air conditioning, remember, that means businesses can't function).
And they blame the U.S. for all of this.
Two thirds of Iraqis say that conditions for peace and stability are worsening. They're right.
