We've been avidly looking for trends—any kind of predictive angles that might indicate where we're going and how we're getting there—and while this morning looked somewhat bleak, I think there are some bright notes emerging that are certainly giving me some cause for optimism.

While a look around the blogosphere and the chief media outlets reveals no end of gloomy scenarios and dire predictions, with some anticipating worldwide holy wars and a collapsed global economy, ultimately the American vision is a positive one. We wouldn't be here if previous generations didn't believe we could overcome the impossible, and to an extent it simply isn't in our genes to expect the worst of all imaginable outcomes. We want the world to be a better place and we strive to make it so; an ideal reality won't happen by chance.

The best news comes from Army Brig. Gen. Vincent K. Brooks, who briefed reporters this morning at U.S. Central Command field headquarters in Doha, Qatar.

Brooks and other military officers reported increasing incidences in which U.S. and British troops were being aided by Iraqi civilians in their search for the paramilitary snipers and Baath party commandos who have harassed them since the start of the ground war.

In two attacks by Marines of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force north of Nasiriyah, Brooks said, "Approximately 100 tribal men joined with coalition forces in these attacks and resulted in the captures of enemy prisoners of war, weapons, the destruction of bunkers and the removal of explosives from a bridge—and there were no friendly casualties."

But there was something different in their their demeanor—something more strident, more polemical, more pugnacious, and more edgy.

The welcome was a tonic for soldiers who have not always received a warm reception..."It's not every day you get to liberate people," said one delighted Marine.

Finally, the International Herald Tribune is running an op-ed this morning by John Vinocur, who reports from Paris that the public mood in France is showing signs of change. True, Chirac still has strong support...

All the same, these were the headlines after a weekend of fizzling demonstrations along French streets: "In Paris, Peace Mobilizes Less" and "In France, the Anti-War People Are Weakening."

Shuttered Vision

I couldn't help but read a round-up of what comedians are saying about the war. Robin Williams has had some sharp commentary lately, and Greg Proops wonders about our punishing Iraq for possessing weapons of mass destruction, since "Apparently, ours are weapons of growth and nurturing." And I liked this from Brian Malow, who notes that audiences are desparate for comic truths about the war:

"Sometimes you say things they've almost thought. You're giving them a voice, in a way."

Cameras are all over this war, making it the most intensely photographed conflict of all time and enjoining our participation—emotionally as well as vicariously—in every aspect of this ugly business.

Some images are harder to find than others. This one, showing the former Baghdad telecommunications building and one of the injured staff who worked there, was exceptionally difficult to locate. By and large, it's the Arab press that works with the results of our efforts, we're being steered toward images that glorify and glamorize our armed forces. CNN, especially, seems to be in the business of producing military recruitment calenders as they silhouette men and machine against rosy sunsets.

But what of the photographers? Those whose fingers depress the shutter release make a conscious decision of what not to show us as they bracket their visions of glory and madness. We're missing the smells of cooking fires and cordite, our adrenaline isn't pumping and we don't hear the terse shouted commands and wailing women. All we get is a singular point of view, often controlled by apparatchiks on both sides of the fence who understand the importance of shaping our perceptions.

None of this is new, of course, and many of you reading this are expert photographers in your own right and fully capable of expounding on these matters with far more verve than I. Nor am I suggesting that any of us are meekly gullible in our reception of this packaging. Simply this: Electronic eyes and ears are extensions of our consciousness and to the degree that we become familiar with them we may forget to ask the Breugelian question of whether we're becoming more compassionate or increasingly inured to the suffering of others.

1:33:31 PM