Posted 11/02/2006 05:10:00 PM by Douglas

How's that whole Iraq thing going? Why not consult Cent-Com's own info-graphic.

A classified briefing prepared two weeks ago by the United States Central Command portrays Iraq as edging toward chaos, in a chart that the military is using as a barometer of civil conflict.

A one-page slide shown at the Oct. 18 briefing provides a rare glimpse into how the military command that oversees the war is trying to track its trajectory, particularly in terms of sectarian fighting.

The slide includes a color-coded bar chart that is used to illustrate an “Index of Civil Conflict.” It shows a sharp escalation in sectarian violence since the bombing of a Shiite shrine in Samarra in February, and tracks a further worsening this month despite a concerted American push to tamp down the violence in Baghdad.

Color codes. . . always with the color codes with this administration. From threat levels to their self-described chaos levels in Baghdad, you gotta love the gross oversimplification of a complex problem.

The obvious question is where on this scale between "peace" and "chaos" does "repent" reside? Off-scale high?