Over the Top

The news that six American soldiers were killed in one day in Afghanistan is another reminder that we are in for a long, hot summer at war.

I've warned that this year will be a year of heavy casualties and higher costs since we are adding troops, using them more aggressively (the rules of engagement do not negate this), and sending them into areas where the Taliban have long dominated.

The anti-war side long claimed that they were only against the "war of choice" in Iraq in order to focus on the "good war" in Afghanistan. But having failed to lose the war in Iraq in order to win in Afghanistan, the anti-war side is now faced with the dilemma of getting the war they said they wanted in Afghanistan even as casualties climb. But who am I kidding? Their choice is clear--bail on the "good" war.

Hopefully, conservative supporters of victory will continue to support President Obama's pursuit of victory in Afghansitan, even as war supporters worry about whether he has the guts to focus on victory through the inevitable difficulties that war will provide.

But trying to justify a switch in thinking over the Afghan campaign based on our surge of casualties this year is a lot like being gung ho about fighting the Nazis, and then changing your mind based on the notion that radically increased American casualties beginning June 6, 1944 indicates that the Nazis are "resurgent" and that the war is lost.

This is gut check time. Don't falter. Don't hesitate. Press forward.