Anti-American chants begin

Below I noted that initial demonstrations in Sadr City included chants of "Yes, yes for Iraq!" and "Yes, yes for law!"

I suppose that was too good to last. The latest chants?:

Iraq cleric's followers march as battles rage
By Aseel Kami and Wisam Mohammed, reuters
27 March 2008
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of supporters of Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr marched in Baghdad on Thursday as a crackdown on his followers raged in southern Iraqi towns and rockets and mortars exploded across the capital.

In Sadr City, the vast Shi'ite slum named after Sadr's slain father, enormous crowds of angry men jammed the main circle chanting and shouting slogans calling for the ousting of U.S.-backed Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.

On the plus side, the demonstrations have apparently been peaceful - a fact which the Pentagon might spin to suggest that Baghdad is no different than an American city facing citizen protests! (... you know, if you ignore the rockets & mortars raining on the Green Zone.)

Meanwhile:

Iraqi prime minister says no retreat
By KIM GAMEL, Associated Press Writer
27 March 2008
BAGHDAD - Iraq's prime minister vowed Thursday to fight "until the end" against Shiite militias in Basra despite protests by tens of thousands of followers of a radical cleric in Baghdad and deadly clashes across the capital and the oil-rich south.

Why am I not heartened by Maliki's vow to fight "until the end"? Whose end?

I note also that al Sadr's rehabilitation in the press has definitely ended. He is again a "radical cleric".

Quite some time ago I suggested a fun game:

Take any MSM article on Iraq. Replace all references to "insurgents" or "militias" with the terms "nationalists", or "patriots", or "freedom-fighters."

The substance of the article will not change, but the tone will, dramatically.

I'd now add,

... and replace all references to U.S. forces with the phrase "occupation forces", and all references to the Iraqi govt with "the U.S. puppet government".

Again, the substance of the article will not change, but the impact of the article will.

Stop the madness!