CHANGING DEFINITIONS OF SUCCESS IS TROUBLING

Was it January or February that Bush said that he would be sending in a surge of troops to tamp down the violence and give the Malaki government breathing room to make important reforms and legislation?

Almost 9 months later, nothing's happened. At least, not according to the Bush administration.

When the GAO released its report along with the NIE, they both presented a stark reality for Bush's surge: Despite the troop increase, violence still remains high and the government has made zero progress in its drive for political reformity and unity.

It's police force rife with corruption and infiltration, and its security forces needed another 18 months to be ready. (Like the last assessment stated two years ago.)

Bothered by the reality of those findings, the Pentagon and the White House jumped into action and started changing things around. Things that were a failure before have been met with "satisfactory" results.

Just like General Petraeus's recent report to Congress: Everything was so rosy and full of bull ticky optimism.

And not a nary of negative reflection and pessimism over this drawn out conflict.

A friend of mine told me just recently: "If the government has to continue to change its definitions of success (or lowering the bar--as I call it)--just to make things look good--than it's already lost the war."

Then I remembered an earlier conflict that my father fought two tours in--and I said: "Yep. Just like Vietnam."

Schuyler Thorpe

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Everett, WA 98204

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