Frankly, I remember feeling terribly frightened the day the U.S. invaded Iraq.   All kinds of thoughts raced through my mind: "Will this be the start of World War Three?"  "Will this war end with a nuclear bomb blast somewhere?"  "Will terrorist attacks on U.S. soil become a regular part of our lives?"

As a reporter, I covered the deployments.  Families kissing away loved ones they could possibly never see again.  As an anchor, I've read the news copy.  Death tolls mounting thanks to some roadside bomb in a far away, irrelevant-sounding place.  All this, part of the military operation called "Shock and Awe". 

Thing is.. it's just not that shocking anymore.

The government has spent nearly 400 billion dollars on this war.  But... we've been watching the tally mount for years, many would argue, at the expense of the U.S. economy.

The death toll is approaching 4,000 lives.   As a reporter, I've tracked down and interviewed my share of families of victims.  It has, sadly,  become almost a routine assignment for reporters across the country.

Politicians and network anchors and reporters often show up unexpectedly in Baghdad.  We've seen this so much, it barely rates a mention in our newscasts... and even then, usually waaay after the more salacious news of the day.

Frankly, it seems like the only news about Iraq that would top our newscasts these days, is if the whole operation could somehow come to an abrupt end, and U.S. troops could finally head home for good.

Now that... that would be a shock, worthy of some awe.