Saddam is DEAD, and the liberal media bleeds

Here's a curious passage from the main New York Times story on Saddam's hanging:

Finally, he was ousted by an American-led invasion force in 2003 and the country fell into a new round of internal violence as the rule of law disintegrated and the Western invaders proved unable to control a country in the aftermath of totalitarian rule.

"The rule of law" is "totalitarian rule"??? I suppose it could be mere sloppiness, but it's revealing nonetheless.

Along similar lines is this from the Associated Press:

Hours after Saddam faced the same fate he was accused of inflicting on countless thousands during a quarter-century of ruthless power, Iraqi state television showed grainy video of what it said was his body, the head uncovered and the neck twisted at a sharp angle.

That "accused" is also revealing, but more important, did Saddam really face "the same fate" as his victims? Yes, al-AP, there is a difference between a lawful execution of a duly convicted murderer and the murder of innocents by a dictatorial state. Come to think of it, it's the difference between the rule of law and totalitarian rule.