Of the Hamas victory, President Bush said: "Obviously people were not happy with the status quo. The people are demanding honest government. The people want services."

Obviously. Obviously it was the services that brought victory for Hamas. I'm sure it had nothing to do with corruption in Fatah.

Now all they need is a Hamas Book Club.

The Hamas victory was the fifth case recently of militants' winning significant gains through elections. They included the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, Hezbollah in Lebanon, a radical president in Iran, and Shiites backed by militias in Iraq.

Do they have book clubs yet? I see a growth opportunity!

"The Hamas victory is a disillusioning result showing that democracy and American interests don't always coincide," said the editor of The National Interest.

A senior State Department official said recently that the Bush administration, five years ago, inherited what he called the old model. "But that's a story that we can no longer accept," he said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of rules prohibiting him from publicly explaining administration policy.

Ha! That's a good one.

I have a suggestion for the first month of the new Hamas Book Club: The Failure of Democratic Nation Building.