Billy Bob's Bulletin's -- June 5, 2006

There is actually a fair amount of stuff that may prove to be of interest in today's papers. The one most worth reading, though is this one:

Bonded by Loss, Divided by War (WaPo)

Amid the sadness that has looped through his life since the death in Iraq of his only son, Derga has found a spark that drives him to defend President Bush, the war and the troops who are fighting it. He has begun to speak out, urging Americans "to have the guts as a nation to stay the course."

Forty miles north, Paul Schroeder and Rosemary Palmer, whose only son lived and died in the same Marine Reserve unit as Derga's son, have also been driven by anguish to speak out. But they do not believe in this war or this president or in staying the course. They are convinced that their son's life was wasted. They want negotiations to begin, the war to end and the troops to come home.

The rest is "just" news, but some of it is fairly interesting

Army Manual to Skip Geneva Detainee Rule (LAT)

The Pentagon has decided to omit from new detainee policies a key tenet of the Geneva Convention that explicitly bans "humiliating and degrading treatment," according to knowledgeable military officials, a step that would mark a further, potentially permanent, shift away from strict adherence to international human rights standards. The . . . State Department fiercely opposes the military's decision to exclude Geneva Convention protections and has been pushing for the Pentagon and White House to reconsider, the Defense Department officials acknowledged.

Eskimo Troops Brace for Iraq (LAT)

For nearly 50 years during the Cold War, being in Alaska's National Guard meant a potential front-line deployment — right at home [againts Russia]. . . . But now, for the first time since World War II, Guard reserve troops in tiny Yupik Eskimo villages such as Kongiganak are being called up, and this time they are being sent halfway around the world — to Iraq.

2 [Saddam-era] Mass Graves Unearthed in Iraq (LAT)

Two recently excavated mass graves containing the bodies of at least 38 people allegedly killed by Saddam Hussein's regime after a 1991 Shiite uprising in southern Iraq will probably provide key evidence for a third war crimes trial against the deposed Iraqi president.

Maliki Fails to Name Key Cabinet Picks (LAT)

Prime Minister Nouri Maliki again failed to announce appointees for Iraq's powerful security ministries Sunday, missing his latest self-imposed deadline since naming the rest of his Cabinet last month.

U.S. Station Seeks Ear of Iran's Youths (WaPo)

The typical listener is probably a male (but might be a female), most likely under 30 (but might be over), and is almost certainly listening in a house (but might be in a car). When it comes to knowing its audience, the U.S.-funded Radio Farda knows only two things for sure: that the audience is surreptitiously listening somewhere inside Iran, and that the Iranian government doesn't want anyone to hear what a U.S.-funded radio service has to say.

Iran's Religious Leader Renews Anti-U.S. Rhetoric (WaPo)

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei unleashed a flurry of broadsides Sunday at the United States and other countries confronting his government over its nuclear program, saying that suggestions of a consensus against Iran were "a lie."

"There is no consensus against Iran. . . . Some 116 member states of the Non-Aligned Movement supported Iran's brave achievements in nuclear technology. The consensus is among a few monopolist countries. Their consensus is of no value."