America's Military

General Tommy Franks first briefing portrays policy as well as military results.

"Asked about Basra, Iraq's second-largest city, which was under siege by U.S. and British forces Saturday, Franks said: "What we have seen is that the Iraqis are welcoming" allied forces as they move through the country. He said they expect the same reaction when Basra falls.

"This is about liberation not occupation," the U.S. general said."

America's military might is on display for the whole world to see in real time. Any doubts about what our military technology in the hands of highly skilled and motivated Americans can do will now be dispelled.

The challenge for American foreign policy after Iraq is to convince the world that we do understand good and evil and will not equivocate on the basis of bankrupt theories of relativism so prominent in our culture and in other parts of the world. America intends to preserve it's way of life and freedom. The recently heralded failure of American diplomacy at the UN and elsewhere, while serious, cannot dissuade us form protecting ourselves.

I challenge the world to solve the North Korean mess with diplomacy. The French, Germans, China and South Korea and Japan seem the logical partners for the effort if they believe the US cannot do so.