Could be worse. It could be raining.

And the good news is...

However, [Rumsfeld] said that the Iraqi forces were growing in numbers, expressing confidence that the anti-occupation rebels in Iraq will soon be defeated.

Asked if the security situation in Iraq had improved, Mr. Rumsfeld admitted: "Statistically, no."

But he claimed that "it has been getting better as we've gone along".

"A lot of bad things that could have happened have not happened."


"The important thing ... is to recognise that this insurgency is going to be defeated not by the coalition - it's going to be defeated by the Iraqi people and by the Iraqi security forces, and that it's going to happen as the Iraq people begin to believe they've got a future in that country," he said.

Donald Rumsfeld could sell water by the side of the river. Statistically safer? No? Could it also be true Iraqis are statistically LESS safe than before the invasion? Let me guess: "Free people are free to do a lot of things, including be killed by occupation forces and murder each other."

So now it's reached the point - well past absurdity - at which we're supposed to consider Iraq a success because the daily catastrophes aren't worse than they are. Only a Bush official get away with such blatant cynical opportunism.