Sometimes you just gotta ask yourself: Did the Syrian government, bowing to U.S. pressure, really close the Damascus office of Hamas, or didn't they? Apparently a naive reporter for The New York Times thought he could just called up the Damascus office of Hamas to find out. The rube!

As for Hamas, the office in Syria is on the outskirts of Damascus and consists of a modest apartment in a residential building. An iron gate protects the door, and visitors must remove their shoes. A representative, speaking by phone, said he was not sure what was happening, and suggested that he was under some restraint. "I don't know if it is closed or not," he said. "If I am here, it doesn't mean it's open."

Via Today's Papers.