Keith Olbermann
Playing —and greeting cards in a changed world
http://www.NewsAndOpinion.com | The Pentagon has unveiled a visual aid to help soldiers pursue, kill or capture Saddam's missing ministers.
A DECK OF 55 face cards, each face a malignant joker from Iraq's famous disappearing government, was what the Pentagon used to underscore Iraq's most wanted. On it, the ex-governor of Basra, or the far better known Barzan Ibrahim Hassan al Tikriti, one of Saddam's presidential advisers, and also one of his brothers.
In this auction-mad society, the Pentagon's Iraq "most wanted" deck has become a collector's most wanted deck on eBay. The website has 105 of the decks for sale at bids ranging from $100 to $849. But slow down with that credit card. The Pentagon says it's highly unlikely any of those decks are real because fewer than 100 were actually printed up for the troops. And they need them to arrest people, like Lieutenant General Amir Saadi, even though Saddam's science adviser turned over his own card Saturday without being called.
According to the manufacturer, this is really educational for the kids. "[Kids not] are not going to read The Wall Street Journal or The New York Times. But they'll read the back of a card," said Lud Denny, president of Proset Cards.
Those with loved ones fighting in Iraq might think of a different card - this one from American Greetings. What message could be more timely than (and I am not making this one up): "Kick Saddam's butt and get yours back here"?
Want to check out the entire deck? Click here to go to the Department of Defenses’ website.
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