[Ditto]

"As to security, for all its problems, the current situation certainly compares favourably with, say, the chaos in liberated Germany after World War II, where military casualties mounted as diehard Nazis made their last stand. But somehow I don't remember the Western media describing those isolated Nazi remnants as an "uprising". But then, in those days, the Western media weren't quietly hoping for the allies to fail."

No, they called it 'mopping-up" and I seriously doubt the press even made page one accounts of the number of GIs and Tommies killed after VE day. Now, each is a screaming headline.

Some other points to keep in mind. For months after VE day, many German people were quite literally near starvation as were people all over liberated Europe. Little or no planning and preparation had been done to take care of the most basic needs. Civilians were forced scavenge military garbage dumps looking for scraps of food while looting was rampent. There is no hunger in Iraq, yet that makes no news.

There was an official non-fraternization' policy that forbad troops to have non-official contact with German civilians. (old Mr. Libido quickly made that policy unenforceable). Now we encourage our military to befriend civilians and go out of our way to help them but I doubt giving the cultural differences that we will have thousands of “war brides” this time.

It took nearly 4 years to establish civilian rule in the Western sectors of Germany, which had a history of democratic civilian rule only 12 years earlier. (The Russians accomplished it much faster in the Eastern sector because many of Stalin’s old German Commie stooges had spent the war in Russia and were ready and organized much quicker). Now, less than 3 months after the fall of Baghdad, we have a civilian council beginning to make decisions on the form and structure of their new government --- and these are people with no memory of democratic rule. The press pretty much ignores that process unless there is a ethnic squabble involved.

Maybe if the President in 1945 had been a Republican, the press might have reported differently then. But I think not. I think the press is different now, and not for the better.

[speekinout]

There is no hunger in Iraq, yet that makes no news.

That's a major point. The US had plans in place to house displaced Iraqis and to feed them. The way it's turned out, the Iraqis are offering US GI's food and cigarettes. We expected it to be the other way around.

After a war, the usual condition is that the people are in dire straits, much worse off than they were before. In this case, people are better off, and the complaints are that they should be living in luxury. Freedom is a mixed bag - some people are better off, some worse. It won't be any different in Iraq than it is in any other free country.