| A Max Hastings article in al-Guardian. |
Those of us who work on the gloomy side of the prediction industry about Iraq, the prospects for Middle East peace, and the sanity of the Bush administration, have been given plenty to think about lately. On the one hand, on Monday the 87th British soldier was killed in Iraq, while suicide bombs and armed clashes have accounted for more than 40 Iraqi deaths since last week. On the other, the Bush administration is in triumphalist mode. A friend who visited the White House recently described the president's buoyant account of his Iraqi crusade, which highlighted the fact that a national government has been formed. Some progress is claimed towards normalisation in Shia and Kurdish regions. Syrian withdrawal gives Lebanon a chance of making something of democracy. Washington asserts that it is involving itself more than ever in the Middle East peace process.
None of these claims should be dismissed out of hand.
| In fact, Max, they're manifestly true. A new government is in place. Lebanon is in the process of healing itself. Kurds and Shi'a are getting along. What's not to like about this? |
The greatest danger for those of us who dislike George Bush is that our instincts may tip over into a desire to see his foreign policy objectives fail. No reasonable person can oppose the president's commitment to Islamic democracy.
| But a lot of unreasonable ones are opposed, and Bush's reasonable opponents haven't separated themselves from the moonbats and kooks very well. |
Most western Bushophobes are motivated not by dissent about objectives, ... |