Why were we in Iraq, again? Is 'Iraq' some slang term for Afghanistan? WMDs, what? And no, "ride it out" (which, being a dumb strategy to begin with) does not conflict with setting a timeline... like I just said, you set a timeline and complete the project when the steps are complete - not sooner. If one of the steps is "kill Osama" and the military thinks that'll take 3 weeks, then you plan for 3 weeks, but the project isn't complete until that happens - it might take 3 years. And, you can communicate that, but the politicians don't want to take the political hit when the timeline slips because the general public doesn't understand how shit works because they have the average intelligence of a high school graduate. "But, you said it'd take 2 years and we're still there. You're a liar and all politicians are evil lying bastards" The more intelligent rational people would say, "You said it'd take two years, we're still there, why? What is the plan? What milestones have been complete, are there any additional resources needed to clear the project roadblocks? What information do you have to show these additional resources are what you really need to make progress?" ...but those people are few and far between.