Getting the Shakes

Saddam Hussein is slowly coming to the realization that he's dead man walking. And the media is still not reporting his changed demeanor and its larger implications:

The media did not report his behavior since he reappeared, Saddam's legs were shaking and he could not stand a number of times when called upon. The sources said that the video filmed for the court shows that the bailiff had to help him stand, and that he was wobbly once he stood up, and when he was spoken to he appeared bewildered and did not know what to say except invoking God’s mercy. As Saddam was escorted back to his cell he sends word to the judge Raauf asking for mercy and clemency. This information was confirmed by the court today.

Now, this could all be part of an act, but I think he's realizing that he's not long for this world, and nothing can save him from the hangman's noose.

Not Ramsey Clark's blatherings. Not the insurgent bombs. Not his sons (both of whom met suitable fates and will rejoin their father in the pits of hell soon enough).

This is the look of someone who is defeated.

It's a sign that the media should be showing for all the world to see - especially in Iraq where the insurgents and Ba'athists need to see that the end is near for them as well.

But what happens if the US decides to pull the rug out from under the Iraqi government? What then? The insurgents who follow the media closer than most Americans do would see that they've still got hope. They'll keep fighting, until they've either extracted such a high price on the Iraqi people that they get their way, or they've destroyed everything that Iraqis have gained to date.