OX called me up about twenty minutes ago: "We got Saddam." Thank God. Saddam's overarching defense of Iraq was so strategically poor that, back in the spring, I truly thought he was dead. He was if fact very much alive, though as I just heard General Ricardo Sanchez describe to reporters in a press conference, Saddam was "a man resigned to his fate." Many questions remained to be answered. Was he directing attacks, or simply trying to evade capture? Will this infuse the already-defiant Iraqis with a will to crush what's left of their former oppressors? With this great prize, how will the Democratic Party react?

The press conference just ended - in thunderous applause. Sky News reporter Simon Marks reports celebratory gunfire. Another mission accomplished.

A THOUGHT: Saddam's circumstances do much to destroy the idea of his planning an insurgency all along. Somehow I doubt his master strategy read as such:

PLAN A: Repel mongrel, infidel, Western imperialists.

PLAN B: Confuse and frustrate mongrel, infidel, Western imperialists.

1. Disperse Iraqi military units in disorderly fashion.

2. Cede authority for hard- and soft-target attacks to Fedeyeen gangs, Ba'athists, criminals and jihadists.

3. Congregate heirs and respective entourages into single conspicuous target for American forces.

4. Wait for successful results of terror campaign, sitting in own refuse, down six-foot hole in the ground.

a. Electric fan recommended.

b. Personal hygiene optional.

Unlikely.

"DON'T SHOOT": If MSNBC's quotation is accurate, Saddam's capture should be considered the "Mother of All Surrenders."