As they stand up...

... we'll stand up in front of them, armed to the teeth.

The New York Times reports the security situation in Iraq is deteriorating by the hour. The death squads are out of control, as evidenced by another 30 headless bodies found on the streets.

But, this passage jumps out to illustrate just how unprepared the Iraqis are to begin taking control of their country.

Interior Ministry officials said a driver discovered the bodies heaped in a pile next to a highway that links Baghdad to Baquba, a volatile city northeast of the capital that has been wracked by sectarian and insurgent violence.

Iraqi army troops were waiting tonight for American support before venturing into the insurgent-infested area to retrieve them.

"It's too dangerous for us to go in there alone," an Iraqi Army commander, Tassin Tawfik, said.

And, our president, our vice-president and our secretary of defense continue to insist that everything is just great and getting better. The problem, see, is that the media aren't reporting all the good news. What about the schools?