So James Baker III was sent to get France, Germany and Russia to drop their claims on billions in Iraqi debt owed to them.

The logic is that the money was owed by a dictator who is no longer in power.

Annoyingly unreported is the fact that it was those same Iraqi billions that were already claimed and spent by US forces in the first months of the war. Only after those bucks were gone did the White House go to Congress for more money.

Then there're the startling accusations of US government looting of Iraqi money, such as this one made by a Christian aid NGO.

Er, don't blink now....This NYT story states that a spate of hirings at McDonald's and other restaurants across the country indicates that "the job market will soon bounce back."

Not to be rude, but given that our "stuff" is made in China and that many of America's top dogs (CEOs of mutual funds, hedge funds, banks, consultancies, accountancies, cities, etc.) are presently on the QT, where is the fertile ground from which this new job market will sprout, like mushrooms after a rainstorm? Consider this: the current McJob spurt to IS the bounceback. Whoops, mah bad.

Offshore bank accounts are one thing. Looks like it's outsourcing customer service overseas is where Dell's US corporate customers draw the line. "With the flick of a switch" -- America's finest corporate IT departments and their regional call-centers reconnect.

Chinese angry over US TV Tariffs;
Ugggh...U.S. receives free- trade lecture by Malaysian experts