WE DID SAY WE WERE OCCASIONAL: But we were surprised to hear President Bush in what must have been an unscripted performance on Sunday (nobody would write so many 'ums', would they?) expressing his shock that people were trying to use violence to determine the future of Iraq. It must be a major slap in the face to him after all his attempts to use negotiation and encouragement to bring about a regime change in Baghdad.

We were also a little surprised that the White House is still pushing the line that the opposition in Iraq is coming from "terrorists." Because if it's the case that Falluja was being ransacked by terrorists, should we take the negotiation of a ceasefire with these people as an indication that the US is quite happy to do deals with Al Qaeda? Unless, of course, they're not Al Qaeda at all, and the American government is lying when it tries to pretend they are? But that would be unthinkable, wouldn't it?