SUING FOR PEACE? – We report everything from Libya with caution, but a new plea by the Gadaffi government suggests that it may be nearing the breaking point:

Libya's government is calling for an immediate cease-fire between rebels and forces loyal to leader Muammar al-Qaddafi after an opposition-led attack, coordinated with NATO airstrikes, rocked the country's capital.
Libyan rebels said they were less than 20 miles from Muammar al-Qaddafi's main stronghold of Tripoli on Sunday, a day after opposition fighters launched their first attack on the city.

The rebels said Saturday that gunbattles and mortar rounds rocked the city during the attack. NATO aircraft also made heavy bombing runs after nightfall, with loud explosions booming across the city.

We doubt if the government would call for a cease-fire if its forces were chalking up victories.

At the same time, Gadaffi himself has made the most serious charge of all.  From CBS News:

As Libya's rebels fought their way into the capital city, Tripoli, for the first time since the uprising began six months ago, state TV broadcast what seemed to be an audio message from their dictator, Muammar Gadaffi.

What was intended to be a message of strength and defiance instead came across as bizarre and slightly desperate, according to the many who listened in.

"You destroy our air conditioners," Gadaffi is reported as saying, according to CNN's Matthew Chance.

COMMENT:  I didn't know we could be so cruel as to destroy air conditioners.  If it is true, I propose a day of reflection to contemplate what we've become.

August 21, 2011