Views differ on shape of earth

There's a now tired joke, about how, if a Republican asserted that earth was flat, journalists would feel compelled to write a story headlined, "Views Differ on Shape of Earth".

The crabbed inability of journalists to write in a straightforward way in the face of sources determined to lie or obfuscate was on full display today, as the Washington Post reports that the U.S. is losing the war in Afganistan:

U.S. Notes Limited Progress in Afghan War: "The contrasting views echo repeated internal disagreements over the Iraq war: While the military finds success in a virtually unbroken line of tactical achievements, intelligence officials worry about a looming strategic failure. "