Dead Man Walking

You got to hand it to the GOP they have an absolutely ruthless grasp of the smear, the distortion, and the manipulation. In time for your Monday headlines--and a bump in the polls just prior to the election--Saddam Hussein's death sentence will be announced. Another foregone conclusion to no one's surprise, least of all the Iraqis who consider the show trial an American puppet theatre. But the Bush regime has worked very hard for the desired result behind the electronic curtain. According to the Institute for Public Accuracy, a team of US lawyers working out of our Baghdad embassy have been driving the tribunal to a rapid conclusion from the beginning and overseeing the case against Saddam. A great way to instill democratic values in a populace with little democratic experience-- behave like the dictator just deposed and make a mockery of justice. But apparently this kind of moralistic charade plays well in the Bible belt.