Even as the 1600 Crew continues to pass out giant contracts to ensure the jobs and wealth of every former, present and future member of the 1600 Crew with some mega-corporation that gets a no-bid Government Contract, the newly-liberated Iraqis are getting a little testy. Okay, make that a lot testy. Here's a small token of the appreciation that a "liberated" Iraqi feels:

''What does America expect? We are eating bread from the same flour that Saddam distributed. The United States has not done anything for Iraq,'' said Jasem al-Obeidi.

Since Saddam was ousted in April, food distribution mostly stopped and unemployment rose in Balad, which is dependent on jobs in the military and agriculture.

The town is full of orchards, watermelon fields, fig and apricot trees.

My guess is that the contributions from the major ag cooperatives have not hit Unka Karl's bottom limits yet or there's a merger taking place in the Ag Sector that will "streamline" operations in Iraq. So, no food before campaign contributions...let's keep some perspective here!

Of course, the locals can't be too happy that other locals are getting killed. I doubt they care why, they just know their neighbors are getting killed by strangers, and it's pissing them off.

Hungry, annoyed and heavily armed locals, now there's a recipe for a peaceful occupation if I ever saw one. Way to go, Neocons...what a strategy. This part is sheer genius:

Iraqis around Balad say their homes have been ransacked and their property damaged by U.S. troops during the raids, which began on Monday. Many say they were assaulted, or handcuffed and detained for hours for no reason.

Hearts and Minds, indeed. Are Rummy, Perle and Wolfowitz all Honor Graduates of the 1st LT William Calley School of Modern Warfare?