By Patrick J. Buchanan

“(O)nce war is forced upon us, there is no other alternative than to apply every available means to bring it to a swift end.

“War’s very object is victory, not prolonged indecision.

“In war there is no substitute for victory.”

Familiar to every graduate of West Point, the words are from the farewell address of Gen. MacArthur, to Congress on April 19, 1951, after he was relieved of command in Korea by Harry Truman.

Two years later, however, Dwight David Eisenhower, a general as famous as MacArthur, would agree to a truce that restored the status quo ante in Korea.