Humanity and Grief In Time of War

Do the sum of small victories in the Long War weigh greater than the sum of all tragedies?

Rumsfeld famously asked the question about whether we were killing, capturing, or deterring more terrorists than were being "created". How does one weigh the positive interactions between the armed forces and the enormous tragedies that connected with them being required?

A soldier's quest to save Iraqi, Afghan interpreters

The results are small-scale, so far.

Over a year after they first sought to escape Iraq, Walid and two other interpreters who worked with Faler have arrived with their families. They all live near him in Oregon now. He brings their kids to doctor's appointments, takes them shopping, helps open bank accounts for them, and tries to find them jobs.

A married couple from Afghanistan, facing homelessness in San Francisco, contacted Faler last year. He convinced them to move to the cheaper environs of Oregon and helped them find odd jobs, pay the rent for a few months, and took them to Wal-Mart to buy household basics. Now the couple is on the East Coast and self-supporting.