Quickies

* Some relevant questions: Is violence on the rise again in Iraq? and Is the US really bringing stability to Baghdad?

* Visions Of The Surge.

* Iran, ever the threat in the Middle East.

* UN shocked by 'grim' life in Gaza. Also see a great corresponding column by John Pilger.

* Newsflash: Israel loves to steal Palestinian land.

* Jim Lobe dusts off his copy of Paul Kennedy's The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers.

* As usual, Chomsky drops some well-placed dissonance.

* Pinch me. The Sibel Edmonds story makes its way into an American newspaper.

* Socialists tend to like Upton Sinclair. See how they react to the rough adaptation of his classic Oil! into There Will Be Blood -- here and here.