Today Salon features "Streets of Fear," a report from Iraq by Georgetown professor Samer Shehata -- it's worth getting the day pass to read. Here's the wrap-up kickoff paragraph:

November has been the deadliest for both Americans and Iraqis since President Bush declared the end of major combat operations on May 1. The headquarters for the International Committee of the Red Cross was bombed. Baghdad's deputy mayor was assassinated. Three of the city's police stations were simultaneously attacked. Two U.S. helicopters have been shot down. In the past few days, alone, gunmen in Mosul opened fire on an oil company executive's car, wounding him and killing his son, and a bomb in Basra claimed several civilian casualties.

And it's only November 12th. Add to this toll today's massive truck bombing in Nasiriyah, killing 23 including 15 Italian soldiers, and to put it mildly, something's gotta give. Looks like they might be too busy over at the White House already, though.