As Noam Chomsky has observed so many times while trying to make arguments against the innumerable atrocities in the world, people want to hear only soundbites. If one cannot make a cogent argument against prevailing attitudes in a timespan of 5 seconds, then one is regarded as stupid and ineffectual. Unfortunately, the most cogent and illuminating arguments take a long time to verbalise because they require us to set out an entire series of premises that people have naturally taken for granted. This is very frustrating. But we must continue making the counter-arguments, because the costs are far too high. I do not look forward to what pictures I'm going to see coming out of Iraq in the middle of February.