When Bush said that we cannot win the War on Terror, I thought he was setting up a brilliant political trap using, what Sun Tzu calls "taking a deceptive stand." It was absolutely predictable that he would be attacked on this statement by the press and his other opponents.

The Warrior-Wife heard on the talk radio show today that some were suggesting that Bush's recent rise in the polls was a manipulation to work his numbers up so that his post-convention "bump" won't look as big. While I am not big on conspiracy theories and even less impressed by polling, the question is whether 0r not this idea is a good strategy for Bush's opponents. The point is to deny Bush some of his momentum by spreading his rise over time and make Kerry's post-convention non-bump seem more normal.

Two French journalists have been kidnapped in Iraq and threatened with death in 48 hours. This is shocking, at least to the French because they oppose the U.S. in Iraq. But, as the French should have learned in WWII, there is no end to appeasement. Yes, they stood solidly behind Saddam in fraternity with the terrorist brotherhood, but they also banned Muslim headscarves in school. The Islamic extremists demand total submission and are guided only by their opportunities.

I have long maintained that war saves lives. Evidence is mounting that the American wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have slowed down or stopped much more deadly wars around the world. The authoritative Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, in a 2004 Yearbook report obtained by The Associated Press in advance of publication, says 19 major armed conflicts were under way worldwide in 2003, a sharp drop from 33 wars counted in 1991. The Canadian organization Project Ploughshares, using broader criteria to define armed conflict, says in its new annual report that

Sun Tzu teaches that it is the core philosophy that gives a nation its unity and focus. In or upcoming books, Strategy against Terror, we argue that changes in media philosophy are largely responsible for the terrorists movement. Recently, we have been watching a lot of old movies from the 40's, Shopworn Angel, Arsenic and Old Lace, The Pride of the Yankees, Mr. Deets Goes to Town and others (not so much as research, but because there isn't that much else on).