Past Wars Cost Us Higher Deaths, Dollars

As we mark the war's third anniversary today, it's worth asking whether such sentiments are justified or whether they represent an emotional overreaction to temporary setbacks. The answer is, of course, unknowable until we see how the war turns out. It is entirely possible the naysayers will be proven right and the invasion will go down as a fiasco. This might be a self-fulfilling prophecy, however, because the more opposition on the home front, the less chance for our troops to prevail. If we avoid both the hyperbole of the administration's more zealous critics and the inflexible defensiveness of its more passionate champions, we can see that although the administration has made plenty of mistakes, the consequences are not irredeemably calamitous. To his credit, President Bush has not made the most critical mistake of all: He has not lost his nerve in difficult times, as have so many Democrats who initially supported the invasion. Thanks to the President's fortitude, the Iraqi people's resilience and, above all, the skill and bravery of coalition armed forces, victory is still the most likely outcome. http://www.oregonlive.com/commentary/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/editorial/1142724305303470.xml&coll=7

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