Veterans, Others Denounce Marchers  —  Counter-Demonstrators Number in Thousands  —  As war protesters marched toward Arlington Memorial Bridge en route to the Pentagon yesterday, they were flanked by long lines of military veterans and others who stood in solidarity with U.S. troops and the Bush administration's cause in Iraq.

Gathering With the Eagles  —  There was another big anti-war rally today in Washington DC, and an anarchist website tipped its hand by announcing that they intended to vandalize the Vietnam War Memorial as part of the action, as they did earlier with the Capitol building.

One thing al-Qaeda excels at; making new enemies.  —  With this series of dirty chemical bombings a war between al-Qaeda and the tribes in Anbar is no longer a possibility.  It just became a fact.  —  I've read at least two very optimistic reports from al-Almada in the last week …

Chlorine Bombs Kill 10, Injure at Least 350 in Iraq  —  Three trucks rigged with chlorine bombs exploded in the insurgent stronghold of Anbar province Friday, in the latest efforts by insurgents to use the toxic chemical to boost the lethal power of their attacks, U.S. military officials announced Saturday.

The paradox of Iraqi optimism  —  The Times of London has written a short article about a poll taken of Iraqis.  A couple of its findings are quite interesting: … Commentary  —  Iraqis seem to believe both that the "surge" is working and that security will improve still further after a withdrawal of the foreign armies.