[Austin Willard Wright]

Simple. Our troops are spread thin in the world as a result of being thin spread in Iraq. Hence, even a brash fellow like Rumsfeld is forced to go begging to the UN for more troops. The problem of world policing overextension was made repeatedly by antiwar freepers in their predictions before the war, of course.

[WOSG]

Simple. Our troops are spread thin in the world as a result of being thin spread in Iraq. "

Wrong. As Bush said, Iraq is now the main front in the war on terror.

Our troops are spread thin because they are spread thin - in over 100 countries from Bosnia to Liberia to the horn of Africa to Germany to Okinawa.

"Hence, even a brash fellow like Rumsfeld is forced to go begging to the UN for more troops."

Actually, the action is completely unnecessary. If we cut other much less usful commitments and assignments, we'd have more than enough.

France and Germany are wrong to demand UN soveriegnty in Iraq. Our post-war efforts in Iraq have been far more successful than any UN "nation-building" attempt. Letting those who were wrong on Iraq before meddle and be wrong again is a big mistake. We can use more multi-national forces, but the price France is asking for is too high.