Not to put too fine a point on things, but consider there's a timing issue involved. More troops in the beginning to do the job is smart; throwing more troops into the cauldron now may not be. Shock and awe warfare works best when it is overwhelming from the beginning. We had the intitiative, but lost it. Can we regain it? Almost certainly, but will sending 20,000 more troops do it? I doubt it.
The numbers Bush critics tossed out before the war were roughly double what Bush said was necessary. It turns out the critics were right. Now, because the job wasn't done properly in the first place, it may take far more than that number to get it done. Do we have enough troops to do that? Again, I doubt it.
Toss on top of that Iran. It's becoming clear it's something we may have to deal with inasmuch as Iran is spoiling for a fight. We may not get to choose this fight either, because Iran knows our pants are down. You ready for a draft? 'Cause that's what it's going to take to get our troop strength up enough to have wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Iran.
Finally, there's Bush himself. If he was a strong leader, say a Bush Sr. or Reagan, I'd have no worries. Bush Jr. just doesn't have the brains to see his way through this mess. He's now totally reactive, rather than proactive. I have to admit reactive is better than isolated and inept, but what is he reacting to? Polls. Dammit.
It's come to the point where everything the man touches is turning to mud. I don't want my daughters fighting for a man that has no idea how he wants to do the job. Maybe the next guy/gal will do better, I don't know, but I have completely lost hope Bush can find his butt, much less realize a stable Middle East.
