Another reason for Iraqis to be grateful. From Human Rights Education Associates, Jan. 16:

Nearly 6,400 Iraqi civilians were killed in the November-December period, slightly less than in the preceding two months, as rampant and indiscriminate killings, sectarian violence, extra-judicial executions -- and impunity for the perpetrators -- continued virtually unchecked, according to the latest United Nations rights report released today.

Startling claims from Focus on the Global South. But WW4 REPORT was warning of this four years ago. From AP, Jan. 15:

MANILA — U.S. troops, in possible violation of the Philippines' constitution, have taken part in combat operations against guerrillas linked to al-Qaida, an activist group said in a report Monday.

Negroponte's comments on Cuba recall Rumsfeld's on Iraq four years ago, don't they? From AP, Jan. 17 (emphasis added):

Cuban President Fidel Castro, ailing and out of sight, has been meeting with a trickle of international guests in recent months, a U.S. government official said Tuesday.

From The Guardian, Jan. 9:

One in eight Iraqis have left their homes in what is the largest long-term population movement in the Middle East since the displacement of the Palestinians in 1948, the UN's refugee agency said today.

From the ITV News, Jan. 15 (emphasis added):

US President George W Bush said Iraqi people should be grateful to the US for the 2003 invasion and the removal of Saddam Hussein.

Boy, this says just about everything that needs to be said, doesn't it? From Newsday, Jan. 10:

Serviceman back from Iraq hit, dragged by cars

NEW MILFORD, N.J. - A U.S. Army specialist who had just returned from Iraq was hit by a car as he walked toward his grandmother's house, then was dragged for a half-mile by another vehicle.

Never forget, this is what we're fighting for in Iraq. It's about our way of life, remember? From NY1, Jan. 10:

Queens Man Arrested After Traffic Dispute Leads To Fatal Shooting

The brother of a man fatally shot by an off-duty correction officer during a traffic dispute Tuesday night in Queens has been charged with assault.

Mowing somebody down with an SUV is certainly a rather decisive way to win an argument. Note how this charming incident uniquely merges the respective pathologies of the USA, with its automotive death cult, and the Balkans, with their endless ethno-historical grudges. Does anybody know exactly what they were arguing about? We are morbidly curious. From AP, Dec. 31: