LOST IN THE CRIES of “Vietnam” and “quagmire” yesterday was this short but very interesting exchange between Tim Russert and Mohammed Al-Douri, the Iraqi ambassador to the United Nations, on “Meet the Press”: RUSSERT: Mr. Ambassador, is Saddam Hussein dead or alive?

AL-DOURI: We start with that. I am here. I am in New York. I think that he is alive, of course, because we saw him several times on the TV.