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My one war report for the day is an Ollie opinion piece. (^:

FN: Ollie North: w/ 1st Marine Exp. Force: Sandstorm going on..."There are fewer and fewer targets...almost nothing left for people to shoot at...a few Fedayeen....there are credible reports that I have seen that indicate uprisings in a variety of cities....a little like what happened to Mussolini....Marines...when they hear a story that Saddam and sons went to lunch as their palace was being sacked...they (are skeptical...think he's in Tikrit)...I watched little kids walking up to US Marines in Saddam City and hand them flowers...that's the kind of thing that gets you choked up...I've seen this kind of thing several times...we've had locals show up at the Marine position and tell us where Fedayeen were hiding....they're warning us about Fedayeen (fettucini (^:)...some of these uprisings aren't just against Ba'ath Party officials...(they're angry at Fedayeen)..."if Saddam Hussein has any following at all it's a very narrow group of people...probably living in Tikrit...there's nobody holding up Saddam Hussein's picture in Baghdad..." "This guy is finished...there is retribution occuring...against the Baathist regime, leaders of it, and against the Fedayeen...the people doing this are the common people....beating people to death...you can't stop it all...I think we're waiting for some of that to subside (before installing new local gov)...it happened w/ Mussolini, Ceaucescu...(Our guys) - they're rested up...ready to go to Tikrit if that's what they have to do...they want to get their job done and go home. Nobody wants to occupy this country. The Iraqis are going to rebuild this country...there were more Marines injured and killed by accidents than by the enemy...no other (military has gone this far..)....it's a very well educated country...this country had a democracy back in the 50s until it was interfered with and mucked up...all different kinds of religions...this country has a Christian population...I can see a multi-party system working here...if (it's) happening in Basrah it can happen anywhere...give them a chance to do the right thing, I think they will.."