The US-sponsored civil war left over 1.5 million Afghanis dead. Their corpses cause no concern on the Capitol Hill. The fuss is about 400 detainees who are treated at Guantanamo a bit worse than under the Taliban and considerably better than under the Northern Alliance rule. Had they been killed instead of arrested, human rights activists won’t care.

Two events compete for the crown of bizarreness today. US oil corporations protest revocation of… subsidies. Yes, oil industry is subsidized. Offshore oil drillers received billions in additional profits ostensibly through an error of the government clerk who prepared their contracts. Kindergarten community would find the story of honest error unconvincing. On top of that, oil giants scream bloody murder against revocation of tax breaks intended for the embattled domestic manufacturers in the first place. Democrats aren’t useless, you see.

Top US officers in the Middle East have no idea about the mission of the second aircraft carrier headed to Persian Gulf. Robert Gates all but admitted there is no mission. The carrier was dispatched, in Gates words, to prove Iran that the US is formidable adversary. As if the mullahs don’t watch TV and need to see a big ship in the Gulf to believe that. Gates believes that the show of force provides leverage in negotiations with the Iranians. At the same time, he rejects open conflict and hopes for rapprochement. Military power is not a deterrent per se, but only coupled with the resolve to employ it. Bereft of resolve, the power is just a show.