What she said...

Madeleine Albright hits one out of the park:

How To Change Iraq

The threshold question in any war is: What are we fighting for? Our troops, especially, deserve a convincing answer.

In Iraq, the list of missions that were tried on but didn't fit includes: protection from weapons of mass destruction, creating a model democracy in the Arab world, punishing those responsible for the Sept. 11 attacks and stopping terrorists from catching the next plane to New York. The latest mission, linked to the "surge" of troops this year, was to give Iraqi leaders the security and maneuvering room needed to make stabilizing political arrangements -- which they have thus far shown little interest in doing.

A cynic might suggest that the military's real mission is to enable President Bush to continue denying that his invasion has evolved into disaster. A less jaded view might identify three goals: to prevent Iraq from becoming a haven for al-Qaeda, a client state of Iran or a spark that inflames regionwide war. These goals respond not to dangers that prompted the invasion but to those that resulted from it.

She's exactly right - and she's put it so well.

I've been saying for years that a single rationale for something can stand or fall on its merits, but a series of different rationales can only demonstrate that the real reason hasn't yet shown its face.

It's high time the administration fess up and ask for assistance in getting this country out of their mess. It's a weak person who values appearing right over actually doing right.