This gem in a recent WSJ story:

After almost four years of trying to build Iraq's central government in Baghdad, the U.S. has found that what appears to work best in the divided country is just the opposite. So senior military officials are increasingly working to strengthen local players who are bringing some measure of stability to their communities. The new approach bears some striking similarities to the 'soft partition' strategy pushed by senior Democrats....

For years Bush Inc. has clung to a fantasy, that a united, democratic Iraq was fully achievable, and it's been like pushing water up a river with a Dixie cup. The Dems have been on to this "revelation" for some time now so it's not really new news. Instead, it's just more proof of this administration's adamant refusal to adapt, to change, to re-work preconceived notions. Ultimately, such stubborn behavior has cost many, many lives and prolonged what perhaps didn't have to be a disaster.