Panic In Baghdad and Washington

Iraq's Foreign Minister says there are 140,000 Turkish troops massed on the border:

It was unclear where Zebari got the figures. If accurate, Turkey would have nearly as many soldiers along its border with Iraq as the 155,000 troops which the U.S. has in the country.

The Foreign Minister just happens to be a Kurd, mind you.

Meanwhile, as the White House supposedly mulls a withdrawal announcement, "Iraqi leaders... across the sectarian divide" are begging the US not to withdraw:

Iraqi officials said the country's own security forces were not ready and warned a premature withdrawal of some of the 157,000 American troops could produce a security vacuum.

Um, "security vacuum"? As opposed to what? The leaders begging the USA not to withdraw are mostly people who spend their time either out of the country, or safely nestled in the Green Zone. No wonder they don't want the USA to pull out!

"We in Iraq believe, not just the government, but all political parties, that the presence of these forces is necessary to prevent increasing violence and to stop the country sliding into civil war," Sadiq al-Rikabi, a senior adviser to Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, told Reuters.

Um, "civil war"? As opposed to what?

Obviously, this is all The New York Times' fault! The panic started by Sunday's editorial has now spread all the way to GOP HQ:

The Republican defections are seen as "a crack in the dike," according to the senior White House official, and National Security Adviser Steven Hadley is most concerned.

Crack in the dike? Hmmn. Casting aside the sexual innuendo, that sounds vaguely familiar!

How did we get in this mess, folks? Michael Scheuer offered a clue on The 7.30 Report last night:

We still make the mistake of believing these people are motivated by our society, the way we live, by freedom and liberty and it's really got nothing to do with that at all. It has everything to do with the offence they take at the policies of the United States and its allies in the Muslim world.

Let's start fixing our policies and take away the oxygen that feeds the flames of Islamic extremism. First policy to go: our continued presence in Iraq.