Here.

I also noticed the trend toward fewer, but more massive IED explosions. I think they've blown two Bradleys up, which is saying something. Ironically, the statement Rumsfeld made, along the lines of "armor doesn't do much good if the explosion is big enough," was, like many of his statements, perfectly accurate even if not politically correct.

Also noted is a fact I noted a long time ago, which is that Syria is up to its elbows in this, somethign obvious to anyone tracking the attacks and flows of men and materials. Whether it's the government of Syria that's involved, or whether the government is just looking the other way (see also: Saddam and Ansar al-Islam), the results are the same. If you really want to make a dent in this, some bombs may need to fall on the Syrian side of the border.

The insurgency is obviously terrified of the elections. Why would a group advertised as the "Minutemen of Iraq" by their enthusiastic fans be afraid of elections?

Those groups that plan on "sitting the election out" should not derail the process. The attitude should be, "Fine. We'll come back and bring you in when you're ready." I suspect some of this is going to be bluff anyway.

There is a lot of fear that some Iraqis will not accept the results because of the lack of full coverage in the voting. Hey, guess what. Some Iraqis wouldn't accept the results even if 100 percent of voters turned out. They'll have to deal with that anyway.

At this point, the important thing is to begin the process, however imperfect, and not let it be stopped. If it's postponed, the insurgency will redouble its efforts.