Juan Cole's blog, www.juancole.com, is one of the best sources of current information on Iraq and the Middle East, written by one of the foremost U.S. professors of Middle East Studies. He reads the Arabic press, has good connections, is plain-spoken, and pays attention to details - not to wishful thinking, the occupational disease of the Bush Administration. This story punches a hole in the administration's blather about the power of Al Qaeda in Iraq - no cohesive "Al Qaeda" block has been demonstrated to exist, and after the identification and killing of each Al Qaeda leader, the violence continues unchanged. He makes some practical suggestions about how to deescalate the ongoing inter-factional violence by providing security ... More »

As Op-Ed, Juan Cole is a very clear-sighted expert who writes well. He has and lays out clear opinions with enough cointext to establish he's not just ranting without foundation. His references are to recent events and to parallels from past wars and his work demands attention, even from those who don't agree with him.