peter beinart?> well, on paper, but it also just adds to the myth of petraeus as, you know, the one guy who can really save us in this circumstance. and certainly if petraeus can turn the war in afghanistan around, his legend will become even greater. but i think the fundamental question that we really need to be focusing on is, is this a coherent policy? i agree with what everyone else has said here. it's not at all realistic to think we're going to have made a lot of progress by the time we've reached this deadline. you either have to be a real counterinsurgency person in which you say we're going to do it for as long as it takes, as much as it's going to cost and it's going to take a long time and cost a lot, or you have to recognize we need to -- we have to radically reduce our goals in afghanistan. there's no middle path there. obama is looking to split the baby. and you just can't do it. >> larry: michael, you're there. what do you see? >> well, i mean, this morning i witnessed a -- i was down