Positive Move

Al-Sadr today extended the Mehdi army ceasefire that has been responsible for much of the apparent progress of the so-called "surge". It dosn't get mentioned in the traditional media or if it is, it is buried in the article somewhere and is usually only a one liner. The current "Surge Success" article on CNN does mention the ceasefire but only in passing. The bullets for the article are...

• Iraqi official: Baghdad security crackdown has reduced violence about 75 percent
  
• Small signs of political reconciliation, but many observers say they're superficial
  
• U.S. and Iraqi forces turn attention to new militant trouble spots such as Mosul
  
• Defense officials want a "pause" in troop pullouts to assess security situation

If you just read the bullets you get the idea that things are going well enough to celebrate. The article itself presents a slightly different picture.

"There have been significant steps forward. There's been quite a bit of progress against al Qaeda in Iraq and against other extremist elements," said Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. military commander in Iraq, speaking in an interview last week with a radio station.

"But having said all that, again I want to be very cautious upfront and note that there's nobody here doing victory dances in the end zone or talking about 'turning the corner' or 'seeing lights at the end of the tunnel,' " Petraeus said. "There's still a lot of hard work still to be done."

Translation: We'll be here for a long time.

Just so you don't forget we still have troops in harm's way and as of today the death toll in Iraq stands at 3970. There have been 66 deaths of American troops since the beginning of the year.