Astounding

I just watched a political roundtable on ABC's "This Week". Among the guests discussing Iraq was middle east affairs expert Reuel Gerecht. Gerecht had an audience with George Bush earlier in the week to discuss the situation in Iraq. When asked about his meeting with the President, Gerecht made the following statement (paraphrasing):

"The President asked alot of questions about the Shia population and seemed quite interested to know how they operate."

I found it absolutely astounding that 3 1/2 years into the war and Bush needs to brush up on his Shia. How can someone make critical decisions without an intimate understanding of the landscape? What an embarrassing admission of inexcusable ignorance, on a subject that has dominated this administration. Is it any wonder that the Bush administration has failed to recognize all the warning signs of civil war?