The Crucible

THE CRUCIBLE....This isn't news to anyone, but it can't hurt to repeat it. Here's an excerpt from Evan Thomas's cover story in the current issue of Newsweek:

Even the optimists don't seem to think that we have more than about a 10 or 20 percent chance of winning in Iraq — for whatever definition of "winning" is currently in vogue. But it's not a 20% chance of winning versus a downside of zero. There's pretty much a 100% chance that the longer we stay in Iraq, the stronger al-Qaeda will get. Anyone who isn't taking that into account isn't taking the war seriously.

  • CBSNews