Iowan, I think we've covered it all. You've never given the slightest indication of the connection between the invasion of Iraq and the lack of a repeat of 9/11, and you basically punted on the substantive reasons I gave by quibbling about the finer points of my explanation, which seems to stand unrebutted.

More Americans have died in Iraq than died in those 9/11 attacks, but being a Republican means never having to admit your mistakes. As for the dead Iraqis, you simply label them as the "enemy" and appear unconcerned. I thought that we were doing this for the Iraqis (seeing as how the WMD thing didn't work out for you), but never mind. I see that was about as true as the WMD charge.

Let's hope that magical thinking works this time and things turn around in Iraq, producing a situation that the Dear Lerader deems close enough to victory so he finally stops sending our guys out to kill and die.

It shouldn't surprise me anymore, but I don't see how people who are convinced that potential enemies are intently watching Jane Fonda and me for encouragement can imagine that those same people don't get a little upset that we invaded an Arab, Muslim country, occupied it, and oversaw its descent into hell while blowing away a goodly number of its inhabitants. You profess not to understand or believe how the US's killing of many times the number that died on 9/11 could inspire the same sort of antagonism that 9/11 did here. At times, you even seemed to take the Madrid and London bombings as vindication of the Bush strategy, a perverse conclusion if ever there was one.

I read your last post, but it was primarily another collection of smarty-pants one-liners that were about a third as clever as you imagine that always managed to steer clear of substance. None of it requires a response, since you brought up no new points, and the few old ones have been rebutted for some time.

You're getting your surge, which I presume you think is exactly the right thing to do--after all, Bush is doing it, so it must be. Petraeus was confirmed because if anyone can make it work, he can. That was a responsible move by the Senate, because we're getting the surge whether anyhone but Bush wants it or not. Let's see if it does work, however you define it. I hope so. But if not, for sure you'll be supporting whatever lame policy President AWOL comes out with to follow it up. I suppose there must be advantages to just doing and thinking what you're told all the time, or you wouldn't do it. You should explain them to me sometime.

Later, man