The Moose returns from his sojourn in the Northland among his fellow cervine creatures.
Much has transpired while the Moose was away. But, the Moose was watching. And he noted that the left was struck by premature triumphalism - an infantile disorder.
The lefties should heed King Pyrrhus' remark about another supposed triumph, "One more such victory and I undone." The Moose remains optimistic that the vital center will triumph. However, centrists must fight in order to prevail.
Of course, while the Moose was in repose, a "cease-fire" was reached in the Middle East. No way around it, this cessation of hostilities was a severe setback for Israel and America. Is Rumsfeld running Israel's defense policy, as well?
The truth is that Israel did not employ all her might, particularly on the ground. While the Bush Administration admirably gave Israel the green light, the Olmert government held back. Yet, Israel's restraint neither won plaudits from vaunted "world opinion" nor did it win the war. Lesson learned.
Liberal democracy is temporarily on the defensive and not winning the war against Islamic fascism. Even on the defensive, however, there are some significant achievements - the failure of the enemy to hit the U.S. homeland and the foiling of the British plot. No doubt, our aggressive surveillance efforts have something to do with that - notwithstanding the ACLU-friendly court ruling to halt those activities. Unfortunately, some are more intent on waging a war against Wal- Mart rather than against Islamic fascism.
While the President has properly labeled the enemy, he is failing to execute a successful strategy. Whither the axis of evil? Saddam is thankfully no more, but North Korea and Iran are on the prowl. It is clear that our enemies know our weaknesses and they are relentlessly exploiting them. Because our foe has no compunction about butchering innocents and hiding behind civilians, the liberal democracies retreat under pressure of "world opinion." The West has clearly underestimated the savagery of our enemy.
The Administration has made many errors in Iraq. But, who would have anticipated an "insurgency" whose primary target are innocent Iraqis? Israel's failure to launch the scale of the attack that was necessary to eliminate Hezbollah and America's decision to allow Sadr to continue his mischief has enabled Shiite radicalism to gain momentum. From the very beginning of the occupation more troops were needed to restore order, shut down the porous borders with Iran and Syria and to destroy Sadr's militia. However, Rumsfeld never adjusted.
At the moment, the mullahs and the madman in Teheran are gloating. But they, like our leftist fundamentalists, may be enjoying premature triumphalism. The question is when will the West absorb the lesson of its past mistakes in this long war?
Despair and retreat are not solutions. Indeed, as history instruct us, our enemies will not afford us the option of retreat, or as it has been euphemistically dubbed, "redeployment." They will come after us. What we need is a sober assessment of our predicament and the mapping out of a strategy to confront our enemies.
The Moose is less interested in partisan advantage than in prevailing in this long war. But, even in an election year, devout Democrats and Republicans must take a second seat to America. We should learn and follow the heroic example of our brave armed forces. More than ever, what our nation needs are leaders, regardless of party or even independents, with the will and wisdom to persevere and win.
In this highly charged political climate, the Moose is a rare breed apart. -- | 
Email
this post
