Who thinks there is going to be a civil war in Iraq?...

...The Iraqis, that's who.

"I'm worried 24 hours a day," said Zainab Hassan, a university student majoring in computer science. "Whenever I hear bomb or shooting, I call my mother and husband to check if they're OK. I can see a civil war coming, it's obvious. Everybody is talking about it. We have to be more careful."

And Saddam is being blamed for creating hostile sentiments between the Sunni and the Shiite. Militant leaders such as Abu Musab Zarqawi are staging a two front war, fighting the Americans on one front and encouraging often violent incidents between Sunni and Shiite. The Iraqi government and the US are blamed.

Nafi Alfartoosi, editor of a newspaper in Samawah in Shiite-dominated southern Iraq, said, "The failure of the government to stop sectarian terrorism of Sunnis against Shiites has deepened the gap between the government and the people. I am sure that many of the millions who voted are sorry for going out on Jan. 30. This weakness in stopping sectarian terrorism and halting bloodshed is encouraging" those seeking a civil war.

Sunni and Shiite organizations, along with Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim Jafari, have sought to calm tensions over the last week. But the effort is hindered by spiraling violence that since April 29 has included the killing of at least 10 Sunni and Shiite clerics, among them Mohammed Tahir Allaq, a representative of one of the nation's top Shiite leaders, Ayatollah Mohammed Saeed Hakim.

Some Shiite and Sunni leaders have blamed each other for the assassinations.

The Iraqis see that their problems are the result of American action and inaction.

With the insurgency killing more civilians, anger against American forces has intensified. Many Iraqis view the U.S. as an unwanted godfather who, despite his prowess and streams of military convoys, can't provide the basics let alone protect them from extremists who badger the nation with Internet screeds and jihadist rants on the radio.

"I only want to put this question to you," said Sana Abdul-Kareem, a dentist with four children. "Why can't the U.S., with all its might and capabilities, impose security here? How come with all our oil they cannot provide us with electricity? My son was so happy when the American soldiers first came. But after two years of failure to make good on their promises, he abhors them."

Baghdad resident Ali Jalal said: "The Americans are behind these problems. They don't want the country to be stabilized. The Iraqi government is like a doll in the hands of the Americans."

Like many of us in the US the Iraqis think that the Bush administration sees advantages to an Iraq in turmoil.

"It's the same problem everyday - traffic, traffic, roads are closed and in addition to that, we have national guards aiming their weapons toward us," said Tanya Mazin, a student at Baghdad University.

"We are living in stress and fear. I do not think this will end one day because it's going from bad to worse."

This is what the administration and the incompetence of Donald Rumsfeld has brought the Iraqi people. Many look back on the days of Saddam as "the good old days".