Groping in the Dark

"Iraq may be spinning out of control, but in the Bush administration, the spin was strictly controlled," writes Evan Thomas. "From Baghdad to the White House, administration spokesmen went to elaborate lengths to argue that the presence of terrorists in Iraq was somehow a positive development." According to a recent Newsweek opinion poll, Bush's approval ratings are declining, and 69 percent of Americans worry that the United States will be bogged down for many years in Iraq without making much progress in achieving its goals. Bad news is also penetrating the public consciousness as families of soldiers stationed in Iraq are shocked by the emails they are getting back from the front lines. "If you're a military commander, e-mail is the worst thing ever invented," complains Republican Senator Chuck Hagel.