Surgin' USA....stalling?

Important piece at the New York Times site now: "Newly declassified statistics on the frequency of insurgent attacks in Iraq suggest that after major security gains last fall in the wake of an American troop increase, the conflict has drifted into at least a temporary stalemate, with violence levels remaining stubbornly constant from November 2007 through early 2008.

"The new figures, presented Tuesday at a Senate hearing in Washington by David M. Walker, the top official at the Government Accountability Office, emerged a day after eight American soldiers — five in downtown Baghdad and three in Diyala Province — were killed in bomb attacks. And the trend appeared to continue on Tuesday, as bombings and small arms attacks led to casualties among Iraqi civilians and security forces in or near at least seven cities."