Court of world opinion
I gather that Sen. Robert Byrd is someone with whom I have many disagreements. Nonetheless, he's the only Senator I hear about who's saying some things that I think need to be said. I like his speech tonight. "America's true power lies not in its will to intimidate, but in its ability to inspire."
Meanwhile, the Christian Science Monitor has a piece on shaping perceptions and likely world reactions to various possible outcomes. Little that's particularly surprising there, but a good summary.
Though the article suggests that the Egyptian people, under the influence of the Egyptian media, which in turn is controlled (says the article) by the Egyptian government, are opposed to America's actions in this war; which seems at odds with CNN's reporting that "Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said Iraq is fully responsible for the current crisis in the Middle East, the Kuwait News Agency said."
The Monitor has other interesting stuff, too. For example, it's easy, from the images I see, to start thinking of Iraq as a desert nation, populated perhaps by nomads in tents. It's sometimes hard to remember that Baghdad is a city, populated by people who do all the things people in cities do. Another Monitor article talks about a black-comedy play that Iraqis are enjoying a great deal; it includes this tidbit about one of the actors:
Sitting in his tiny dressing room, Mr. Mustapha adds: "I am an Iraqi citizen before I am an actor. I should challenge and defy [any US-led war], not by using a gun, but by my art. In these bad circumstances, I should prepare and continue my words until just moments before the war begins."