...I can't see it in a positive light.

Things didn't turn out the way we'd thought they would in terms of WMD. We were wrong, it seems (though ultimately the jury is still out). We apparently had more time, and Saddam less capability, than we'd thought. But we're there now, with a huge responsibility to do everything we can to get it right for the Iraqi people. And not just the US because we led the coalition into battle, but each and every participating nation. To cut and run now, imho, is a disservice to Iraq and an encouragment to those who are using kidnapping and murder to blackmail not only the coalition but the Iraqis as well.

The departure of the Phillipines, I fear, will put Australia in the crosshairs since they've got an election looming and a challenger who has openly stated he'd have the troops home by Xmas if elected. How many Australians will die, both in Iraq and on their own soil, in the next few months at the hands of Islamists?

Look, if someone I knew or loved was being held hostage by people who were unencumbered by mercy, I'd probably be screaming to do whatever it took to get that person to safety, but that wouldn't neccesarily make it right...not for Iraq, not for our troops, not for our country.

Were we wrong to go to war, at least at the time we did? Very possibly. But I can't take any joy at watching the "crumbling of the coalition," (if indeed that's what's happening). Failure in Iraq is far too high a price to pay just to see a Kerry victory.