Reporters on the Job

• Wait a Minute Weather: Judging weather usually isn't too difficult in Iraq, says staff writer Scott Peterson. It's hot, hot, and more hot, with clear blue skies only sometimes clouded by dust storms (as it was Monday in Baghdad). But northern Iraq has a different climate, and that's not just a political or economic truism.

Scott has visited that part of the country often enough to expect the unexpected. Even after a week of hot, windy weather Scott grabbed a rain jacket Monday as he headed out to cover the funeral of 512 Iraqi Kurds. When the big drops came he quickly put on his jacket while others searched for limited shelter. "But it was just a few drops, and the whole storm blew over. As the sun beat down, I had to pull the jacket hood up again - this time to avoid sunburn," says Scott.

David Clark Scott
World editor