Gun Counter Gomer:

Two suicide attacks on pet markets in Baghdad today have left approximately 100 killed and twice as many wounded. Both attacks used women "with Down’s syndrome" according the the Daily Mail and less specifically, they were described as "mentally disabled" according to CNN.

Both bombs appear to have been remote detonated. These women probably did not know they were carrying explosives at all, and it would probably be fair to include them among the victims.

The ever-objective, ever-unbiased New York Times saw fit to exclude the horrific detail of their alleged mental disabilities from their reporting of the day’s massacre. It might upset their readers, and cause some confusion over who the real enemy in Iraq is (George Bush).

Sigh. NYT article:

Iraq’s chief military spokesman in Baghdad, Brig. Gen. Qassim al-Moussawi told The Associated Press that the bombers appeared to be mentally impaired and that the explosives were detonated by remote control.

Maj. Gen. Abdul Kareem al-Ezzi, a senior officer in the Ministry of Interior police commandos, said officials at the Ghazil market had scrutinized the suicide bomber’s head and concluded that she had Downs Syndrome. However Iraqi officials have made similar claims in the past, and other witnesses said her head could have been distorted by the blast.

One eyewitness, Mohammed Qasem, 35, a roadside vendor at Ghazil, said he saw the woman minutes before the explosion, apparently behaving normally.

“She was guiding a small kid with her and she wasn’t uncomfortable at all because she was walking and looking behind her,” he said.

“The child who was with her stopped near me when I saw her for the last time, and a few seconds later the explosion happened and I was thrown a couple of meters away from my booth. I recognized her later when I saw the head but the child had vanished, and I want to know what happened to him because I can’t forget the innocent look in his eyes.”

Look! Over there. Scott Beauchamp is letting air out of your tires! Go. Run! I’ll hold yer beer….