I'm not certain if this is what the anti-war crowd has been looking for with its protests of the administration's Iraq policy, but The Washington Post's William Branigin reports that America could soon send more troops into harm's way in the Middle East.

Anticipating an increase in insurgent attacks, the United States plans to send more troops to Iraq in advance of an Oct. 15 referendum on a new Iraqi constitution, which is considered unlikely to halt the country's violence, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said today.

Rumsfeld's plan: sending at most a couple thousand more troops to the country. Will it make a drastic difference? I'm not an expert in military issues, but a 1%-1.5% increase in troops is not earth-shattering.

The situation in Iraq is improving in some ways and worsening in others. Clearly, the steps towards a constitution bring hope; should a moderate Democracy eventually emerge in the country, there is no question that it would be an enormous positive for the region.

But gauging just the numbers, there is still cause for concern. American casualties aren't really changing; indeed, August has been the bloodiest month since January. And what's more, the monetary cost of the war is simply not dimishing.

So is it time to drastically increase the troop levels in the country? It's tough for me to say. But America's Iraq policy is not working as well as it could or should, so some change must occur. And soon. Because far too many Americans and Iraqis are losing their lives for a mission that seemingly has no end in sight.