Somebody is still a cynic

Jeremy Scahill writes on his RebelReports Blog about the "Hallmark Hype" of the U.S. withdrawal from Iraqi cities and the official "national day of sovereignty" proposed by the government of al-Maliki.  He reminds his readers of a paragraph by Patrick Cockburn, from his recent piece in Counterpunch:

Iraq is the world’s premier kleptomaniac state. According to Transparency International the only countries deemed more crooked than Iraq are Somalia and Myanmar, while Haiti and Afghanistan rank just behind. In contrast to Iraq, which enjoys significant oil revenues, none of these countries have much money to steal...Iraq was not always uniquely corrupt. In the 1970s its administration was probably more efficient and honest than in most oil producing countries. It was the aftermath of the invasion of Kuwait in 1990 which criminalized Iraqi society. UN sanctions imposed a tight economic siege and were designed to keep oil revenue out of the hands of ruling elite. Extended over 13 years they destroyed society and the economy.