Apple has already started their countdown to the release of the latest Mac OS, which will be in less than an hour as of posting time. Unfortunately this only adds to my confusion as to whether or not I should invest in upgrading this time around. I've heard numerous views; some people think it's an absolutely groundbreaking OS, but others contend that besides Time Machine, it's just a bunch of GUI enhancements that aren't worth the $130 Apple is charging (side note: I find it interesting that the most powerful OS in the world costs less than half as much as Microsoft's desperately sub-par Windows OS). Personally I'm extremely satisfied with Tiger and am more than willing to wait for a price drop (iPhone, anyone?). Thus I extend the dilemma to my Mac-using readers (all three of them) to see if I'm not alone in this opinion.

And for you Windows people, get a Mac.

Today British Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced that a further reduction of British troops in Iraq will take place. Half of the current 5,000 troops there will be removed, to the disappointment of ever-growing appeals for a full withdrawal of British troops.

To me, this just affirms my theory that Britain is just plain embarrassed to even be associated with this ordeal any more. Think about it: last week the prime minister withdrew 1,000 troops from Baghdad. The current troops there are responsible for "training and mentoring" Iraqi forces. Training and mentoring? Yes, I can clearly visualize the British troops handing out orders and then discretely tiptoeing away, hoping no one saw them. And now they're planning to take out another 2,500 troops to transition into what they're calling an "overwatch" state in Iraq.

Before anyone gets critical, can we really blame them? I'm really wondering why any nation would want to provide indefinite aid in the midst of an indefinitely long war led by an indefinitely indecisive president (say that 10 times fast). What Brown is doing seems to be sensible: at least now it appears they're hoping to quietly disengage without damaging Iraq (or what's left of it). The tentative goal is a full withdrawal by the end of 2008.