Boom! Brendan Nelson Surges Into Action

Did you hear the one about the suicide bomber who strolls into the heart of the Green Zone? It's a cracker! But it could have been even worse:

The parliament security officials, who spoke Thursday on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information, said two satchel bombs also were found in the parliament building near the dining hall. A U.S. military bomb squad took the explosives away and detonated them without incident, the officials said.

Insurgents also destroyed a key Baghdad bridge, tossing cars into the river and killing at least ten people, and there are rumours of two US helicopters being shot down. Meanwhile Turkey has started attacking Kurds in Iraq's north. And that Algerian terrorist blast has now claimed at least 24 lives. And a new British study blames Bush, Blair and their blind devotees in the GWOT for inciting such horrific violence around the globe.

But never fear, folks! Brendan "Boy Genius" Nelson is still focussed on "the job", whatever it is (his boss still won't tell us):

"Whilst it's disappointing that this kind of thing could occur in the middle of a security crackdown, it will only strengthen our resolve to see the job through," Dr Nelson told ABC Radio.

"It also reflects the fact that perhaps there are some people within the Iraqi security forces that have been infiltrated by insurgents and terrorist organisations."

No!!! You think so, Brendan? Really?

So I guess we won't see George Dubya handing out plastic turkeys in that cafeteria anytime soon! In fact, John McCain's pleasant stroll down the boulevardes of Baghdad might be the last Western political visit Iraqis see for a while... Unless they are going really, really, really bad in the polls!

Mind you, if you really want to target Iraq's wandering semi-exiled vacation-loving politicians, the last place you are likely to find them is actually inside the Iraqi parliament. Iraq's PM expressed his outrage... from South Korea. Following Brendan Nelson's courageous lead, al-Maliki is also demanding a full enquiry.

Yeah, right... that'll teach 'em. Another big enquiry, at huge public expense, with lots of committees accusing each other of bias, and a draft report that can be closely scrutinied by the Higher Ups before it is selectively leaked to the press on a Friday afternoon. That'll teach those Al Quaeda bastards!

Meanwhile, the black helicopters are already buzzing Sydney...

UPDATE: And I thought young Nelson was the genius! John "Little Man Genius" Howard actually saw this attack coming:

"It was not only lethal, horrific and cowardly but also very symbolic but this had to be expected," he said on Southern Cross Radio.

"This surge has got to be broken and be made a failure if the terrorists are to win in Iraq and they know what's at stake.

"They know this surge, if it works, could represent a turning point."

Oh, God, please save us all from any more "turning points"! On the assumption that Australia is about six months out from a federal election, I would guesstimate that one Howard Unit is roughly equal to one F.U.

Atrios introduced the neologism Friedman as a unit of time (six months). The term was coined in reference to the discovery by Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting of journalist Thomas Friedman's repeated use of "the next six months" as the time period in which, according to Friedman, "we're going to find out...whether a decent outcome is possible" in the Iraq War.

And of course, just to channel Kevin Rudd for a moment (brrr!), if this "turning point" in Iraq is so important, why are we sending more troops into Kabul, not Baghdad?