Folks, regardless of the details of the NIE controversy can I just say that I’m not particularly troubled by the NIE’s alleged finding that the Iraq war has increased terrorism. I mean, doesn’t that make sense? I think Bush is mistaken to dismiss this criticism as factually absurd when in reality the absurdity lay in some folks’ interpretation of the facts. He said in his August 21, press conference that the notion the Iraq war stirred up a “hornet’s nest” “just doesn’t hold water as far as I’m concerned.” He added, “The terrorists attacked us and killed 3,000 of our citizens before we started the freedom agenda in the Middle East.”

That’s all fair enough. But, why shouldn’t we think that the Iraq war has increased terrorism in the world, or at least the risk of it? The hornet’s nest analogy is apt, albeit clichéd. We were stung — and stung badly — well before the Iraq war. And after the multiple stings of 9/11 we decided to take the fight to nests.

If my backyard is festooned with hornet nests, I will likely be safer from a sting on any given day if I do nothing than I will be on the day or days I begin destroying them. Since when is any large, important, task required to show positive results at every stage? Declaring war on Japan increased the threat of war from Germany dramatically. And waging war on both countries, obviously, made things less safe for Americans in the short run. As I wrote a long time ago, lots of things go badly until they go well.