the donnybrook

I give the Maliki "government" about 2-3 months...at the outside. Yesterday's mass killings in the Sadr urslum and today's reprisals, which include burning six Sunni worshippers alive while ISF forces stood by, are simply the symptoms of the underlying hatred and dysfunctional nature of this "nation". Our illustrious leader is planning to meet with Maliki next week in Jordan, not Iraq. We have 140,000 US troops in country and yet the threat is too great to meet in Baghdad. No word yet from Maliki's minions on the threat from the al-Sadr bloc's threat to leave the government if the meeting takes place. True, they hold only 30 of 275 parlimentary seats, but Maliki relies on al-Sadr's approval to remain in power as Sadr holds great sway, though not control, over the Mahdi army.