al hawza applause batman bloodthirsty killers bochum confrontations correspondent counte doubts earth economy explosive devices extremist facebook first trip general petraeus george w bush hamas happy couple hero hezbollah hikers hordes iraq israel israeli ambassador israelis low impact l paul bremer mass murder mehdi army middle class money moniker muqtada al sadr nationalism obstacle palestine patrick cockburn peace talks persistent language pitchfork political prominence ramparts religious doctrine revival scribner senator obama s green shiite cleric sleeping bags social networking sites spiegel suicide bombers tax authorities undeniable progress united states viceroy violence zeitgeist