THE WRONG WAR?

I’m afraid I’ve become skeptical of Nick Kristof’s warnings about almost every single initiative the Bush administration takes in the war on terror, but nevertheless, his column today is disturbing. Is it true that our effort in the Philippines is directed toward a small and unimportant terrorist group? Is it true that it’s mainly cosmetic? These are not questions to be dismissed as anti-war caviling, if they’re accurate. They’re important questions to ask if the war on terror is to be executed effectively. Kristof is also right to emphasize the desperate need for more peace-keeping troops in Afghanistan. Today the Times’ John Burns reports that the U.S. military is now engaged, perhaps for the first time, in controlling warlord opposition to Karzai’s government. We need far, far more ground-troops in Afghanistan if the regime isn’t going to unravel, and the entire momentum of the war on terror lost. The current number of Brits simply isn’t enough.