Strategic redeployment or thinly-disguised retreat?

In the Weekly Standard, military historian Frederick Kagan punches some holes in the notion that America could move its forces to Kurdistan or Kuwait and still play an effective role in Iraq.

Over-the-horizon quick-reaction forces are simply a fantasy. We will not end up using them for all of the reasons given above and for one more: They will put our soldiers at far greater risk than they now face.

The piece is worth a close read; it's part of the nuts-and-bolts debate we need now. The election is over, so we can get beyond tired catch phrases and code words.