This ad clearly demonstrates the sheer desperation that has seized the McCain camp. Let's review a little history; In 2000, just before Bush took office, gas averaged $1.07 a gallon, today it averages $4.27 a gallon... For 6 of the last 8 years, the Repugs controlled both houses in the legislature and the White House... For half of that time, Obama was a State Senator in Illinois, not the US Senate... And, how long has McInsane been part of the problem himself, 25-30 years...? Teh Stoopid... It burns...!

In news out of Iraq...

Obama and Maliki had a little chat...

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said on Monday during his meeting with visiting U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama that developments in Iraq will determine the presence of foreign troops in the country.

“Al-Maliki stressed that developments on the ground will enable Iraqi and U.S. sides to agree on a clear vision regarding the presence of troops, noting that the two sides agreed during their negotiations on the long-term agreement,” according to a statement released by al-Maliki’s office and received by Aswat al-Iraq – Voices of Iraq – (VOI).[...]

“We now have a strong government which saved Iraq from terrorism,” al-Maliki added, expressing his optimism regarding realizing the Iraqis’ ambitions in security, stability and economic prosperity,” he also said.
“For his part, Obama congratulated al-Maliki on the achievements made by his government, hailing the U.S.-Iraqi relations and the developments in the country,” the statement said.
“The U.S. senator told al-Maliki that the American people seek to have strategic relations with Iraq, asserting the U.S. commitment to maintain Iraq’s security and stability,” it added.
A cabinet media source had said earlier that Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and visiting U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama discussed a number of topics including the future of U.S. military presence in Iraq.
"Maliki received Obama as soon as he arrived in Baghdad and the two sides discussed the possibility of U.S. troop cuts in Iraq," the source, who asked that he is name not be revealed, told the VOI.

I wonder if either of them experienced any translation issues...

In other Iraqi news... Do you remember the Bad Weather that delayed the turn over of Al Anbar province? Well, apparently it wasn't just the weather...

Fallujah Braces for Another Assault

U.S. and Iraqi forces are preparing another siege of Fallujah under the pretext of combating "terror", residents and officials say.

Located 69 km west of Baghdad, the city that suffered two devastating U.S. attacks in 2004 has watched security degrade over recent months.

"Ruling powers in the city fighting to gain full control seem willing to use the security collapse to accuse each other of either conspiracy (in lawlessness) or incapability of control," Sufian Ahmed, a lawyer and human rights activist in Fallujah told IPS.

"They suddenly changed their tone from saying that the city was the safest in Iraq to claiming that al-Qaeda is a serious threat. Fallujah residents know their so-called leaders are using security threats to terrify them for their own political interests."

In the face of U.S. military claims of improved security, violence has been rising by the day this month. The city has now been placed under tight curfew while U.S. and Iraqi military forces prepare for a new offensive, according to the local Azzaman daily.

Iraqi security forces have established new checkpoints around the city and are forbidding movement of people and traffic. Pick-up trucks are roaming the city warning residents that al-Qaeda has once again infiltrated Fallujah.

Iraqi police officers insist that the situation is under control despite the "occasional incidents that take place all over Iraq."

The indications on the ground belie these claims. "The Americans and their allies transferred our leader, Colonel Fayssal al-Zoba'i from his post because they have bad plans for the city," a major in the Fallujah police force told IPS. "He has all the right to keep his post because he was the one who led us to defeat the insurgency while the Americans failed. They (the U.S. military) seem to have a plan to destroy the city again."

Iraqi police and troops from other areas are being deployed in the city in what police officials say is a build-up for a huge offensive. U.S. occupation forces are on the ready in nearby bases.

The government in Baghdad has made it clear that direct U.S. military involvement is critical for an "imminent offensive" in Fallujah, sources in the Iraqi military have been quoted as saying in Iraqi media.

That sure was one looong sandstorm... I feel for the residents of Fallujah...