I am only complaining about the editing, juxtaposing happy laughing peasants with the bombing. It is so juvenile. The truth is so much more complex: the Americans went out of their way not to bomb civilian targets, with much more care and success than in the first war (I am not saying they succeeded completely, obviously). Moore says nothing about this.

I think one needs to be very careful assessing the pros and cons of before and after Saddam. It is obvious there is much less overt physical security right now, but one of the problems of living under a manic dictator like Saddam is that no one is safe from his whims, even in a nice home. A police state is only superficially secure. You only have to read the horror stories of what his regime did whenever they felt like it to find the issue of "security" more complex than simply being able to walk the streets today. (Of course, it is also important to stress that Americans have no idea that Iraq was one of the most progressive states in the region in terms of social advancement until it ground to a halt in the late 80s and after).

yours,

Peter T.