April 12, 2003

Saddam Hussein's former plastic surgeon is captured CNN's Martin Savidge: The man was picked up this morning by Charlie Company, of the 1st Battalion, 7th Marines. They run a routine patrol in the city of Baghdad, and he approached them. He identified himself as the plastic surgeon to Saddam Hussein and his family. He said that not only had he operated on Saddam Hussein -- he didn't say whether that was recently or not -- but the Marines also said he made this claim that he knew where the families have fled. Clearly one of the top priorities right now is to find out where the regime has gone and where they can be found right now.  9:08:35 PM

Rand Simberg challenges CNN:  OK, CNN Now that we know how the game is played, please tell us why your reporting from Damascus, or Gaza, or the West Bank (as just three examples) should be given any credibility whatsoever. How much of Arafat and Assad's thuggish behavior have you been covering up? And if you now propose to tell us, why should we believe you? In a just and rational world, this should be devastating for the network, but they'll probably get the usual pass. 1:31:26 PM