If you recently read a story about LTG Sanchez (former commander of ground forces in Iraq) and his criticism of the conduct of the Iraq War, you may have gotten the impression that he now considers that war "a nightmare with no end in sight". I thought so, too (see my post below). Then, after reading some comments at The Belmont Club, I read the General's whole speech. You should read it, too. Sanchez believes that the over-all war we are fighting against Islamist extremism without a unified national strategy is the nightmare (he quotes from a Japanese proverb, "action without vision is a nightmare"). He also slams some elements of the national press corps and the civilian leadership in Washington. You might not agree with everything he says, but there is certainly some truth in it, especially when he points out that we do not seem to have any kind of national strategy to conduct the over-all war, nor the national unity that such a strategy might provide. This, of course, is a recipe for defeat.

Of course, it could get worse. If Stanley Kurtz is to be believed, in this piece on the National Review website, then nuclear deterrence of North Korea is failing, which could lead (and Kurtz believes there is at least a 50-50 chance) to a nuclear detonation somewhere in the world within the next few years.

Congratulations to Fred Thompson. While he may not be campaigning enough here in New Hampshire, he has, at least, been politically courageous enough (or dumb enough) to offer a plan to resolve the looming Social Security crisis. It won't help him win (and might hurt him), but it does raise him up a notch in my estimation (and I'm a real, live, New Hampshire primary voter, so it might count for something).

A noted hurricane expert says Al Gore's film doesn't pass the smell test.

Some experts believe that Al Qaeda in Iraq is crippled. If true, that is good news, though it won't change the political reality here at home, and it may not change the political reality in Iraq, either.