The fact that Romney's foreign policy tin-ear is not confined to off-the-cuff remarks like those that got him into trouble in Britain and Israel, but extends to a carefully prepared and vetted speech only blocks from the United Nations, is profoundly revealing.

But let's be clear: Ron Paul is no Martin Luther King. While Dr. King most likely would have supported Paul's call for bringing troops home from Afghanistan, King's understanding of what peace means is almost the opposite of Paul's.

Both sides of the aisle have done a miserable job of fostering a national debate about the wisdom of going to war. We are witnessing the same issues that dogged us in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Vietnam.

It would be more than unfortunate if peace abroad becomes a casualty of a domestic war. And it would be expensive in the long-term. Wars cost money and lives. If we don't stop wars overseas, we pay for them at home.

General McChrystal needed a way out of what was becoming for him an unbearable burden: the conflict between the best interests of his country and the best interests of the soldiers who served under him.

Trust the reasonable man at the helm. Don't deride him for calling things complicated. Let's quiet down, listen for the rational discussion, and let cooler heads prevail.

Back in 2009, President Obama had meeting after meeting with his military chiefs to decide what strategy to take in Afghanistan. I take us back to this decision because at the time, I believe the best and worst-case scenarios looked roughly as follows.

It's easy to say you support the troops, but numbers prove that the support often stops with the placement of a yellow ribbon on the back of a car. 1...