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Shoppers Seek Bomb Barriers in Baghdad
Strategy Page ^ | 2007 Jun 28
Posted on 06/29/2007 1:41:53 AM PDT by Wiz
June 28, 2007: One of the worst side effects of the terror bombings in Baghdad, is that it makes people reluctant to go out and, more importantly, to shop. This hurts the economy, especially the retail trade. So the U.S. Army came up with a bold idea. They are setting up 1,800 concrete blast wall sections in one of the city’s major market places. Some merchants objected, because the blast wall sections were tall enough to block a view of their shop. But they soon realized that they could put signs and posters on the blast wall blocks. It was also quickly noticed that customers were more abundant, and more relaxed. If the terrorists did bomb the market, the blast wall sections would greatly limit the damage. That was enough to bring out a lot of shoppers.
(Excerpt) Read more at strategypage.com ...
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http://www.washingtontimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070629/FOREIGN/106290056/1001
“Britain’s Brown picks a war critic for new Cabinet”
By Al Webb
June 29, 2007
ARTICLE SNIPPET: “LONDON — New Prime Minister Gordon Brown named a Cabinet yesterday that included a critic of the Iraq war as foreign secretary — a clear signal of a shift in British policy toward the unpopular conflict.
Less than 24 hours after taking over the prime ministership from Tony Blair, Mr. Brown swept all but one of his predecessors from their Cabinet posts, shifting a few into other jobs and replacing the rest with a mix of new faces and trusted allies — effective immediately.
Mr. Brown’s lineup includes his longtime political ally, 53-year-old Alistair Darling, as chancellor of the exchequer, or treasury chief. Mr. Brown held the post throughout Mr. Blair’s decade in power.
Jacqui Smith, the ruling Labor Party’s former chief whip in Parliament, became Britain’s first female home secretary.
But the most eye-catching new name was rising political star David Miliband, who at 41 becomes the youngest British foreign secretary in 30 years, and potentially one of the most controversial, given his discomfort over the Blair government’s policy on Iraq.”