We interupt the political news

to inform you that the jaguar cubs at the Stone Zoo are exceedingly cute. They're two months old and somewhat larger than full-grown housecats, but much more sturdily built. They stalk things (and each other) in that slightly ungainly way that kittens have, at times forgetting what they're doing and pausing to lick some errant bit of fur into place. They pounce on their mom, each other, and the shrubbery repeatedly.

Finding a vantage point where you can see the cubs yet not have them able to attack you seems to be a major interest to this jaguar mom. At one point while we were watching, she gave out a couple of deep coughs that gave me hope of seeing a jaguar hairball, but it was not to be.

You can see footage of the cubs by clicking the link in the right column of this page:

http://www.zoonewengland.com

Powell admits Iraq getting worse

Today on This Week with George Stephanopoulos", Colin Powell said:

Sec. Colin Powell: Yes, its getting worse and the reason it is getting worse is that they are determined 
to disrupt the election. They do not want the Iraqi people to vote for their own leaders in a free, 
democratic election.  And because it's getting worse, we will have to increase our efforts to defeat it, 
not walk away and pray and hope for something else to happen.

It's good he can admit this, but is it happening for the reason he says? The administration has been using this "terrorists/insurgents are getting desperate" notion for a while now. It's been repeated a lot. I've seen lists on other sites; I'll try to track one down. What if the insurgency is gaining ground? Wouldn't it be best to face facts now and do something. Waiting till the election is over is not supporting our troops as they deserve.

Colin Powell looks like something out of a Shakespearean tragedy to me. He's a truly talented and admirable man, but his loyalty to his superiors (in name) has blinded him to the loyalty he ought to have to the country and to the troops. I would have thought that someone who had been through Vietnam would have quit rather than allow the current useless mess to occur.