Sand in the Gears has another dispatch from Iraq:

From what I can tell from watching the U.S. media, the prison scandal has not died down. However, here in Iraq, it's not getting as much play, and the Iraqis that I speak with daily tell me that under Saddam, the Sunni's were the ones who were torturing the Shi'ias and the Kurds. And when I say torture, I mean like drilling holes in heads, hands, feet; and that is the least painful things that have been told to me.

So, the Iraqis here say that now that the Sunni's are in Abu Ghraib, they tell me it's "God's judgment." And how do the Kurds feel about it? Yawns all around. It is only the liberal American media who will just not let this thing go. I still tell folks, however, that this scandal doesn't represent what is great about America. But they follow up by saying, "What about justice for those who did this to us under Saddam? There is no justice for them!"

Of course, I have no answer. I understand and empathize with them, but I tell them that you don't justify bad behavior by pointing to worse behavior, and that America operates on a higher moral standard, and those who choose to break the law, pay the price in a democracy. It's a good lesson for the Iraqis to see that America punishes those who commit crimes. They never saw that under the evil reign of Saddam.

You should go read the whole thing. My favorite quote: "An Iraqi friend of mine, Z, said that Al-Jazeera and CNN are one and the same..."