"The War Is Lost! We're Doomed! Run Away!"

But enough from Sen. Harry Reid. "Fightin' Harry Reid," the W. T. Sherman of the US Senate, has already announced that he knows more about what's going on in Iraq than Gen. Petraeus does.

So let's do what Harry Reid won't, and get listen to/learn from some actual reporting:

"Last week, Connecticut Republican congressman Christopher Shays briefed his Republican colleagues on the progress he observed in Iraq earlier this month. No member of Congress has visited Iraq more often than Shays, and since he’s an outspoken critic of the Bush administration’s war strategies, members of Congress were attentive as he gave his impressions from his 16th trip. For the first time in over a year, Shays saw promising signs, and he is anxious to confirm them when he returns to Iraq next month. He is encouraged by the improved security in Baghdad, the cooperation of Sunni tribal leaders in Anbar province, and the dramatically improved oil production in the north."

What? A member of Congress reporting "progress?" Yeah, but what else would you expect from a right-winger like Chris Shays, representing the rednecks of red-state Connecticut. There aren't any impartial observers who haven't given up, are there?

Uh, well actually...

Clinton pal and frequent Bush critic Gen. Barry McCaffrey wrote a scathing review of screwups in Iraq, but concluded: "We can still achieve out objective of a stable Iraq, at peace with its neighbors, not producing weapons of mass destruction and fully committed to a law-based government."

British military historian Sir Max Hastings, a big-time critic of the war, says that losing in Iraq would be a disaster for both the Iraqis and the West, and that Gen. Petraeus--despite ignoring the military advice of Harry "Rambo" Reid--is winning "real if partial victories."

What does this prove? Only that rational, reasonable people believe the war is still winnable. It can also still be lost, too. Given the stakes of this war for the entire world, why wouldn't this inspire to fight smarter and harder for a much-needed victory, instead of embracing the option of defeat?