And In That Other War

What are we trying to accomplish again?

KABUL, Afghanistan — A roadside bomb and assault-rifle fire killed four United States soldiers and a Marine in three different attacks in southern Afghanistan on Thursday, where new American brigades are pressing offensives against a resilient and dug-in Taliban and other insurgents.

The attacks on Thursday in Zabul and Nimroz provinces pushed the number of American military deaths in Afghanistan to 219 this year, already 41 percent more than in all of 2008.