Comment - On the plus side: the oil fields were quickly captured, western Iraq was secured to prevent the firing of Scuds into Israel, we have a bridgehead across the Euphrates River, the new Patriot missile batteries appear to be working really well (shooting down most of the Iraqi surface-to-surface rockets) and, for whatever reason, no chemical attacks yet.

On the negative side: Saddam's regime did not crumble under the "shock and awe" attacks (although it remains an open question whether Saddam is dead or alive), the fedayeen thugs are dangerous and need to be eliminated, and weather/supply problems have slowed the U.S. advance.

Here's a summary quote from the article: "The war so far has been demanding and unpredictable. But the United States military has accomplished some important objectives and has changed its strategy and tactics to deal with its foes. Allied commanders seem persuaded of two things: the fedayeen will be defeated and the most difficult fight, the battle of Baghdad, lies ahead."

News - My reading of headlines in the Washington Post, New York Times, and watching CNN makes me think that Bush is starting to turn around the PR battle: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A33955-2003Mar26.html

Comment - This article is reinforcing the message that the war could last months and that we need to assemble more troops. What's missing is any hint that we should quit, so that's a win for Bush.

Also, coverage of our troop conduct is overwhelmingly positive. And, several stories today about how the U.S. forces are showing flexibility in dealing with temporary military setbacks.

I'm sure the media is strongly influenced by daily polls that continue to show strong support for the war.

News - Brandon passed on this link to an article that shows what happens when you get too curious about Homeland Security: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A16791-2003Mar23.html

Comment - Goes to show that just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you.

News - To close on a lighter note, here's a funny article from Dave Barry about how he helped write jokes for Steve Martin's Academy Awards show: http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/living/columnists/dave_barry/5454934.ht m

Comment - From the article: "We met eight times over the course of three months. Most of the meetings were in the living room of Martin's home, a fine place to sit and laugh. In addition to the writers, these meetings were attended by Martin's Labrador retriever, Roger, whose contribution to the process was to periodically emit eye-watering blasts of flatulence. We'd be sitting around, tossing out jokes, and suddenly, WHOA, the air would turn green. When this happened, Martin would give Roger a stern lecture."

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