I wouldn't be surprised if it is true, but I also wouldn't be surprised if it was a story planted to enhance his image as the kind of tough guy Iraq needs--Wouldn't be surprised if both were true--

Until Bush, the State Department's policy in the Middle East was based on a distinctly Orwellian balance of power--there were three powers: Iran, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia--when one got too strong, the US supported the others against it--Saddam was a key element in this balance, because it was widely believed that only he could keep Iraq united--

We tend to see the "insurgency" as some sort of retaliation against the US--if you look at the targets of the daily bombings and attacks, however, most are not American--in fact, it looks very much like Iraq is falling into the pieces that Saddam used his brutal system to pull and keep together--

A brutal strong man might seem to some like the only solution, but it must be remembered that Saddam used his tactics to supress dissent before it got out of hand--there is no dissent now, there is civil war, and everyone is using the same tactics--