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"I hope you show your "good friend" James Bowden these replies?"

Whenever I post an article, I immediately send the author confirmation of the posting, with the link, so that they can track the "incomings!"

James will most surely be watching all of the reactions. He's a "big boy" and doesn't take any offense to negative replies.

As for this particular subject matter, or anything else which is negative toward any part of this administration's policies or activities, I actually test myself from time to time.

I tend to be such a terrifically loyal team player, that I really hesitate to criticize anything about "my team." But it's healthy, I think, to be open minded enough to at least consider contrary points of view. In my opinion, it is not healthy to refuse to think that the administration might have made mistakes. Whether this article is accurate about mistakes in the Iraq war (or planning), is beyond my "pay scale" to analyze or be sure of, because - as I've said before - I'm just a little civilian lady and not a military analyst.

The bottom line for me is that our planners did the very best they could at the time. I personally am put off with those who are quick to criticize after the fact.

I'll say one thing. There have been a lot of people saying that we're always "fighting the last war." In this regard, Rumsfeld was specifically NOT "fighting the last war." His whole idea has been to modernize our forces, right from the beginning of his tenure as Sec. of Def.

Thanks for your ideas, Horn Dude! (what a name!)

Char :)