Cursor's Media Patrol - 11/03/06

A senior U.S. general depicts the war in Iraq as "a work of art" in progress and plays down the "violence and friction with Iraqi leaders as 'speed bumps' on the road," as 'the PR behind Bush's favorite slogan' is revealed.

Nick Turse adds up the evidence of an emerging 'prison planet,' to find that "the American gulag is so much more than Guantanamo and so much worse," and Britain is accused of pursuing 'a dangerous policy on torture.'

'A nuclear primer,' part of a "vast archive of Iraqi documents captured during the war" and put on the web "under pressure" from Congressional Republicans," is taken off line in the face of concerns that it might help Iran or other nations build a bomb. Plus: 'Cry, The Beloved Stupid Country.'

A privacy watchdog warns that "U.S. privacy protections rank among the worst in the democratic world," surpassed only by Britain, which it termed "an endemic surveillance society."

Amid signs that the White House is launching a campaign to 'politicize Saddam verdict ahead of midterm elections,' Glenn Greenwald urges the Democrats to take the offensive on the issue.

Facing South asks whether the hotly contested Senate race in Tennessee is 'the last stand for the GOP Southern Strategy, as the potential impact of the gay and youth vote in that state is considered.

As one artist releases an "art army" action figure, it's found that 'The chief export of Chuck Norris,' in his new role as a political columnist, is creationism.