Take the pledge...

I think it's fair to say that the war hasn't gone as planned. Sure we defeated Saddam's military forces quickly, but despite the President's warnings, I still think most Americans still expected our military might to not only crush Saddam's traditional military, but any residual guerrilla fighting as well. Despite the warnings, I don't think America was mentally prepared for the stubborn toughness (tough in the hard to kill a cockroach kind of tough) of the terrorist elements, insurgents, and religious warriors. But simply chalking this one up as a loss because we as a society weren't mentally prepared for a war that was intended to change the hearts and minds of a Muslim population that has been battered and beaten into submission by religious rivals and then expected to dismiss all past transgressions to allow the country to unify and move forward, Kurds, Shiites, and Sunnis all together as one. That sort of a unification takes a lot of time. So instead of throwing in the towel on the current plan, he let it be reworked, changed, and revamped by professionals like General Petraeus. The big idea he got in return was "send more troops." So that's what he pledged to do. But now the newly elected Democratic Senate is getting Republican support from Senators Norm Coleman and John Warner for a measure that would block the 21,500 extra troops that were approved for deployment into Iraq. On an anecdotal note, the possibility that these extra 21,500 troops might be prevented from going by a Senate vote is pissing the hell out of our troops and their supports. A lady I work with, who's son died in Iraq, made the statement that "if they refuse to send those extra troops, they are giving up on the war and motivating the enemy, and if they lose the war, my son died for nothing." My thoughts exactly... What honors our troops more? Pulling out and truly making this another Vietnam (that anaolgy would finally be accurate to an extent) or finishing the job, so that the sacrifice our troops and their friends and family have made won't have been in vain. So if you're pro-victory, sign the pledge (via Hugh Hewitt). We can win this war. We just have to want to win it.