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Victor David Hanson in National Review Online has a stunning article on how we are slowly winning the war on terror. He makes parallels between now and the Peloponnesian War, between now and the Civil War, between now and World War II, and between now and the Cold War. His point is that in every war there is a tipping point. It is a point at which everyone begins to realize who the winner is going to be. It is human nature to want to be on the winning side. Once the realization of who that winner will be sets in, people start to move to that side of the contest.
In 2003/04 many people naively compare Iraq with Vietnam. The parallels are few and sparse. Victor David Hanson views the whole sweep of history to show the true parallels.
He makes the point that even though the weight may be in one direction, there can be temporary and devastating setbacks – like the Battle of the Bulge and the Kamikaze’s in World War II. But these are desperate actions by the losing side. We should expect just that from our enemies. But if we keep our resolve, it will be shown as their last gasp and victory may well be within out grasp. I urge you to read the whole article. It is what I call realistically optimistic.