(16.4.2003) The tragic result is that treasures that survived even the Mongol sack of the city in the 13th century could not withstand the impact of 21st century technology and imperialist barbarism. Bush, Rumsfeld and company personify the new barbarians: a “leader” who is himself only semi-literate and wallows in religious backwardness; an administration populated by former corporate CEOs for whom an artifact of ancient Sumer is of more interest as a tax shelter than as a key to the historical and cultural development of mankind.