It is truly sad

It is pathetic when the apologists for the disaster in Iraq begin to believe their own propoganda. Check out this nonsense from the Chicago Tribune:

What Happened in the Bunker

Iraqi and American investigators are due to report Monday on the recent discovery of 161 malnourished detainees at an Iraqi Interior Ministry bunker. The honesty and thoroughness of this report may have a great impact on the future of the nation as a representative democracy that protects the rights of the minority.

These weren't jaywalkers being held in the bunker. Many were linked to the bomb attacks that have terrorized the nation. Iraqi officials have described them as the worst of the worst in the insurgency. But the mistreatment of the prisoners, and allegations that some were tortured, have raised fears that the Iraqi government will repeat some of the sins of the nation's former dictator, Saddam Hussein.

The Interior Ministry is run by Shiites, while most of those detained on suspicion of ties to the insurgency are Sunnis, the once-privileged minority that thrived under Hussein. It's important to note that the bunker was discovered in a raid by U.S. forces, and the subsequent investigation is being conducted jointly by the U.S. and Iraq's government. A whitewash is not likely to be the result of this investigation.

U.S. forces found mostly Sunni men and boys detained in the bunker in a mostly Shiite neighborhood of Baghdad. Some of the prisoners bore signs of paralyzing beatings and other means of torture. Virtually all were malnourished. The discovery seemed to bolster Sunni claims of the mistreatment of Sunni terror suspects, some of whom are alleged to have been innocents picked up at random off the streets. Such accounts served as disquieting reminders of how easily Iraq's new democracy could slip back into thuggery and oppression. (Slip back?????????)

Disputes have erupted within Iraq's government over how extensive the cases of torture may be. Interior Minister Bayan Jabr has vowed to punish anyone involved in torture, but also said the worst abuses were limited to five to seven detainees.

Another potential complication: Shiite militias linked to the Interior Ministry who perform a central role in running detention centers and conducting other police work. In Iraq's deeply tribal society, it is not clear how much control Interior Minister Jabr has over the militias or, for that matter, how much accountability he and other top Shiite leaders demand from them.

All the more reason for the investigation by the FBI, U.S.-led military forces and an Iraqi-appointed citizens group. They quickly widened their purview to cover all detention sites, which number at least 1,100 throughout the country.

U.S. officials sent the right signal by issuing a rare rebuke of the new government for failure to respond quickly and decisively to long-standing Sunni complaints and by working out a plan for humane treatment of detainees.

Iraq is not simply trying to catch bad guys and quell a crime wave. It is attempting to end an insurrection that seeks to destabilize a fledgling government. Those who are detained may have information about the scope, nature and leadership of that insurrection. So no one should expect kid-glove treatment of them.

Nevertheless, this incident is not a test of how well the Iraqi government will protect itself. It is a test of how the government will protect the rights of the Sunni minority in the new Iraq. The nation has been freed of Hussein. Let it remain free of his brutal tactics.