It sure was Monday

Check it out! Four to six inches of snow blanketed the ground across Greece and draped the olive trees in ghostly white as winter made it's presence known in this usually temperate country. Schools were closed across Athens, villages were cut off, and travel was disrupted. Snow on the Acropolis. Wow.

Pakistanis dealt Musharraf a stinging rebuke on Monday when they elected a whole slate of opposition parliamentarians. It was seen as a repudiation not only of Musharraf but also of the Bush administration, which has backed the regime unwaveringly. American officials will have little choice now but to seek alternative allies from among the new political forces emerging from Mondays voting.

As Tajiks struggle to survive the worst winter the country has seen in at least three decades, the United Nations has issued an urgent appeal for $25 million in emergency aid. Cities are enduring inconsistent water and electricity delivery, and rural areas have been cut off from food supplies. The U.N. estimates that half a million people face food shortages, and at least 260,000 are in need of immediate food assistance.

How's that Surge™ workin' out for ya? Five Iraqi civilians were killed when rockets rained down on an American military installation near the Baghdad airport and an adjoining neighborhood. Two American soldiers and n14 Iraqi civilians, including six children, were injured. Rocket attacks are far from rare, but this one was unusual because it was sustained and focused.

Well, that's it for Monday. This is your nightly open thread. Make the most of it, and I'll see you on the morrow.