Iraqi violence continues

Today more than 40 are dead in the latest attacks in Iraq:

Insurgents determined to wreck Iraq’s upcoming constitutional referendum killed more than 40 people and wounded dozens in several attacks Tuesday, including a suicide car bomb that ripped apart a crowded market in a town near the Syrian border.

U.S. and Iraqi officials have repeatedly warned that the insurgents would step up their attacks to undermine Saturday’s vote, a crucial step in Iraq’s democratic transition.

That sounds a bit hollow sounding. It's the umpteenth reason we've seen for the insurgent attacks, and yet they continue after each reason fades into history. The insurgents probably don't care if the election goes off without a hitch at this point. They will remain a force in the country regardless of the outcome. And their continued presence cannot be doing much to convince the people of Iraq that democracy is the answer to country's problems of terror and violence.