We should never have started numbering world wars

Oh, this is a pleasant thought.

A civil war in Iraq could lead to a broader conflict in the Middle East, pitting the region's rival Islamic sects against each other, National Intelligence Director John Negroponte said in an unusually frank assessment Tuesday.

"If chaos were to descend upon Iraq or the forces of democracy were to be defeated in that country ... this would have implications for the rest of the Middle East region and, indeed, the world," Negroponte said

Lt. Gen. Michael Maples, director of the Defense Intelligence Agency gave an assessment of Afghanistan that shows things aren't necessarily going well there either.

"Insurgents now represent a greater threat to the expansion of Afghan government authority than at any point since late 2001, and will be active this spring," Maples said in his written statement.

That'll really impress this guy.

So much for the Bush doctrine. Whatever it is.