I remain optimistic.

Irrespective of all the posts I have written, and will write in the future, chastising the President, moaning the blues and screaming in pain, I am committed to following the President on this latest wrinkle.

I think he is merely buying more time toward his basic operating theory that good things happen if you come to work everyday. Good guys win in the end. Succeeding is trying just one more time than you fail. Never give in! Never give in! Never ever give in!

I remain optimistic because I am infected with the same contagion as the President: Evangelical Americanism. We are a people of hope. We are a people operating under the delusion that all things work toward good for those who love God. We are a people convinced that freedom is not just right--but our birthright.

None of the above statements are logical. Smart people the world over can explain why only a complete ignoramus would believe these things. No matter, I continue to believe in the goodness and necessity of our mission in Iraq. I continue to believe there is a recipe for success out there, and it is our challenge to discern it.