Reid Kanaley, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Dec 10, 2006
To complement the landing of the much-anticipated report of the Iraq Study Group, urging quick changes and an end to the U.S. combat role by early 2008 to stop a "slide towards chaos," we searched for sites likely to increase our understanding of the issues -- or, failing that, to make us smile in the face of disaster.
The report. Download the report from the Web site of the United States Institute of Peace, an organization, funded by Congress, that facilitated the Iraq Study Group. The institute has fact sheets on the situation in Iraq, scenarios for change, and what it calls a transition "from bullets to ballots."
Iraq daily. So, we're scrolling down this page of reports on Iraq, and there is Britney Spears, between a headline about the Baker report and one about the latest witness in the trial of Saddam Hussein.
Rose Garden glasses. An interactive feature on the White House Web site for Iraq appears to invite visitors to put questions directly to officials such as Brett McGurk, director for Iraq on the National Security Council. Alas, a click on the link returns this message: "We are not accepting questions at this time. Please check back for the next Ask the White House."
Electronic Iraq. An article here had already declared the study group report "the policy equivalent of a still birth." The site's eIraq Blog seems to be getting to the heart of matters with posts such as "Americans Blame Iraqis, Iraqis blame Americans."
Satirical political. We learn at this humor site that Hillary Clinton has formed a "Barak Study Group" and that the Iraq Study Group got an F and must repeat the course.
Cartoon corner. Take your pick of issues and get a face full of political cartoons on the subject from some top cartoonists all over the country. Slate.com cartoonist Daryl Cagle also has a blog. In the entry we saw, Cagle described and illustrated the entire process he goes through to draw his cartoons.
