I agree with your assessment about the Brits in Basra. They stood off while clerics, some with a radical Iranian leaning bent, took civil control of various areas of the city. As the article explains there are no-go areas in Basra, just as there were in Bagdad. Since the Brits have already announced a partial withdrawal from southern Iraq, the situation there could become worse. Michael Yon before he was kidnapped and killed painted a bleak picture of Basra in 2005:(http://spencepublishing.typepad.com/in_the_red_zone/2005/07/the_leaderbon_a.html). Some say it is no better today than it was then.
I think you mean Steven Vincent, not Michael Yon. I haven’t heard about Michael going down to Basra.