Iraq, the sovereign colony?

I don't think I will be as harsh in my assessment of the Iraqi situation as is this editorial in The Hindu: "The regime of Nouri al-Maliki apparently has no qualms about plumbing new depths of ignominy."

But, the editorial is certainly an example of the views of quite a few millions (billions?) out there who see the US/Maliki relationship as not being helpful to Iraq.

Meanwhile this editorial in the Boston Globe has a title that says it all: Iraq, the sovereign colony? And the lead sentence in the editorial is absolutely unequivocal: "President Bush has been treating Iraq less as an ally than a vassal."

I wonder how this nightmare will end! Certainly not via Iran, I hope.