We on the right often complain, with good reason, about bias and unfair coverage in the mainstream media. But this morning’s Washington Post has two huge, well-reported stories on the front page, and for that those on the right ought to be giving them some attaboys.

First, left side of the front page, photo above the fold, large-font headline below the fold: “In Iraq, a Lull or Hopeful Trend? Subhead: Signs of Declining Violence Leave Residents, U.S. Commanders Cautious.”

First paragraphs:

From store clerks selling cigarettes by generator power, to military commanders poring over aerial maps, Iraqis and Americans are striving to understand the sharp decrease in violence over the past several months and what it might herald for the future of Iraq.
The number of attacks against U.S. soldiers has fallen to levels not seen since before the February 2006 bombing of a Shiite shrine in Samarra that touched off waves of sectarian killing, according to U.S. military statistics released Thursday. The death toll for American troops in October fell to 39, the lowest level since March 2006, and the eighth-lowest total in 56 months of fighting, according to the Web site icasualties.org, which tracks military fatalities.

The second great story, right side, above the fold: “A Contractor, Charity and Magnet for Federal Earmarks.”

#more#

Opening paragraphs:

Concurrent Technologies began two decades ago doing metalworking research in Pennsylvania’s struggling rust belt. In the years since, the Johnstown, Pa., company has become a federal contracting chameleon.
It is an intelligence adviser, an environmental consultant and a software engineering specialist. It has trained mine-detecting dogs and managed religion-based initiatives. It oversees construction projects, organizes conferences and studies ways to use hydrogen for fuel in Pennsylvania and South Carolina. Missile-defense research is part of its portfolio. So is the development of special armor for combat vehicles in Iraq and “solid waste technology” in Florida.
And it is a nonprofit charity.
Behind the rise of Concurrent is Rep. John P. Murtha (D-Pa.), chairman of the House Appropriations Committee’s defense subcommittee, who helped arrange funding to launch the organization in 1988.

We can’t complain that the entire MSM is ignoring Murtha’s earmarks or progress in Iraq anymore.