Kathy Kinsley greets Iraq a happy birthday; it has been quite a long gestation and the work is far from over but in an excellent stroke of forced-timing against Murqawi and his band of bandits, we handed over sovereignty back to the Iraqis two days before the “deadline.” Well, there you go.

UPDATE: Jeff Quinton aggregates.

UPDATE: Here’s a quick thought for all of us. With Zarqawi and his dogs blasting Iraqis to bits, Allawi and friends can finally ask our Armed Forces who are there to help maintain security to finally, finally swoop down on the enemy in a way the likes of which we were too “sensitive” to do. Besides, such hunting down of elements detrimental to Iraq’s progress is in the interests of Iraq, and will be blessed by a legitimate government, not an occupying force.