Linkage

I'm a bit lethargic on the blogging tip right now, so here's some lazy linkage.

* Despite American grumbling, the Iraqi constitution looks like it will be derived heavily from Islam. Accordingly, some rights that women enjoyed under Saddam Hussein's regime will likely be stripped away. See Juan Cole for more on this.

* Martin Sieff peers behind the promised troop withdrawal from Iraq next year.

* Phillip Robertson's Salon piece, "The victim and the killer," is worth a read.

* According to the CBC, "More than 800 people have died in a surge of rebel attacks and government offensives since March" in Afghanistan. This has triggered a number of angry protests against the American presence there.

* What's this about nuking Iran?

* It's over! The Global War on Terror has been replaced by the Global Struggle Against Extremism. So let it be written, so let it be done.

* The NY Times catches up on speculation that the July 7th London bombers may have been duped into committing suicide. Plus, from The Independent: How big was the terror plot?

* Kevin Drum points to the latest developments in the Plame case, which follow on yesterday's Washington Post article about the wide scope of Fitzgerald's investigation.

* Here's an interesting CJR piece by John Dinges on the ups-and-downs of Venezuela's press under Chavez -- a tale, primarily, of what happens when the class biases of journalists bleed into coverage.

* With a nod to Thomas Frank, Tim Wise asks: What's the Matter with White Folks?