Debate over the new strategy for Iraq mostly has been between those who regard it as a "last chance" for victory, and those who think the war already is irretrievably lost.  About this, two observations: The first is that we have a much lower threshold for what constitutes defeat than our grandparents did.  In the summer of 1942, the Japanese were planning to invade Australia, and German tanks were parked at the Eiffel Tower.  But few then said we should throw in the towel. Our parents and grandparents realized the fascists we were fighting then were really nasty guys; that living in a world in which they were dominant would be intolerable.  They realized our country had great strengths, and our enemies had weaknesses.  If our strengths could be mobilized, and their weaknesses exploited, victory would be ours. We did mobilize our strengths.  Half our gross domestic product was devoted to the war effort. Things sure are different now.

Notice from the header above that this article is in the category of "Replies from Dr. Jack."  It is my fault this category has been defunct for a while, even though it remains listed in the left side bar.  One reason is because I try to participate in our User Forums and respond to member questions there.  But this means a short response, and often a member comment or question requires something longer. So I am re-instituting the "Replies" section and will try to have at least one every week from now on.  What triggered this was a question member Jeffrey W. had regarding Red State Louisiana.  I had predicted that the destruction of the New Orleans' corrupt 9th ward meant the destruction of the Democrat Party machine in the state and the election of Republican Bobby Jindal as governor this coming October. Jeffrey asked:

Interesting article, but what are your thoughts about the machinery which re-elected Ray Nagin even after the Katrina disaster? How could this play out when the time comes to elect a new Governor? Do you think enough of this machinery is still intact to thwart a Republican victory? 

The Jade Steps Chapter Thirty: The Glory of Otumba They set off as dawn broke to stumble into Tlacopan where the chiefs of the city met them with fear in their eyes. "Malinche!" they addressed him.  "We warned you to stay here where you would be safe, and not to go to Tenochtitlan.  Now you have been destroyed, and we with you, for the Aztecs will soon follow to kill you and us." Cortez stood arrow-straight and calmly spoke to Malinali.  "Doña Marina, inform these gentlemen that we greatly value their friendship and shall see they not suffer for it." The chiefs remained worried.  "You must not stay here, Malinche, for the Aztecs are sure to attack.  Not far from here is the temple of Otoncalpulco with a large courtyard surrounded by a wooden wall.  There you will be safer.  I will order our people to carry your wounded on litters and help in which ways we may." Cortez thanked them profusely and the chiefs issued their orders.  One of them turned to Malinali.  "Malinche must know that we are Tepanecs, not Aztecs.  Our kingdom was the first to be enslaved by them. It was our hope that Malinche was the answer to our prayers to be free of their rule."  He looked pleadingly into Malinali's eyes.  "Is there any hope left?" Malinali returned his gaze.  "As long as Malinche is alive, there shall always be hope."

It is hard to get there if you don't know where you want to go. Despite the Democrats gaining control of Congress and his own previous mistakes, President Bush still has the opportunity to leave a constructive economic legacy, but to do so he must first clearly define his goals and determine what is realistically doable. It turns out there is a trio of legacies - regarding reforming Social Security, excessive spending, and excessive regulation - being made available to him.

You may have missed it in all the holiday excitement, but on December 30th the main Madrid airport (Barajas) was hit by a car bomb. It's a real blow to Spanish Prime Minister Jose Zapatero, whose nickname, believe it or not, is Bambi. The appropriately nicknamed coward was elected on the backlash of the 3/11 (2004) Madrid train bombings by cowardly Spaniards rejecting the courageous Jose Aznar. Bambi immediately withdrew Spanish forces from Iraq (where they had performed extremely well, by the way), proclaimed al Qaeda guilty of the train attacks (after Aznar had fingered the Basques), and then immediately started a Peace Process with ETA. Bambi Zapatero is one of those appeasement enthusiasts who yearns for defeat and humiliation at all costs, and just the day before the airport car bomb he had triumphantly hailed the great success of his pre-emptive surrender.

It's hard to win a war if you quit fighting in the middle of it.  That's the lesson we should learn from Ethiopia's New Year's message to us. Six months ago, when the militia of the Islamic Courts Union seized the Somali capital of Mogadishu, it appeared that the al Qaeda-affiliated radicals were on the verge of a major triumph.  The redoubtable StrategyPage declared them "unstoppable," and the usual hand wringers were urging us to negotiate with them. Ethiopia's military quickly defeated them last week because it unapologetically used force against vicious people who understand only force.  They killed the people they needed to kill without worrying overmuch about collateral damage, and not at all about world opinion.  And though the Ethiopian soldiers are Christians, they were hailed as liberators in this overwhelmingly Moslem country. We need to apply Ethiopia's lesson to Iraq.

Washington politics can be so much fun if you look upon them as the world's best circus.  This week's clown act was hilariously performed by the Breck Boy, John Edwards, announcing his candidacy for the presidency in the 9th Ward of New Orleans. It was especially funny for me, as I was in New Orleans at the time for New Year's.  The 9th Ward was the area most devastated by Hurricane Katrina in August 2005.  The day after Edwards' appearance, I drove my son Jackson through it. Endless block after block after block, street after street after street, the small cottage homes are unlivable and abandoned.  At the most, one home out of every two or three dozen is repaired and occupied. Even many of these, however, have only cosmetic repairs covering up irreparable damage from mold.  After all, all these homes were under water for weeks.  Thousands upon thousands of homes that have to be torn down are still standing because Mayor Ray Nagin insists they be rebuilt - which they never will be. What he can't face, what John Edwards can't face, is that the corrupt heart of Democrat control of Louisiana - New Orleans' 9th Ward - is gone.