A quarter millennia before the birth of Christ, the Roman Republic was not much older than ours was on that fateful Tuesday morning six years ago. In 264 BC, a century-long struggle between Rome and Carthage began due to a local dispute over a small parcel of land on the Mediterranean: not Israel, but Sicily. Replete with sweeping naval battles, war elephants, legendary generals, and the two great powers of the day, the three Punic Wars were destined to reverberate across the ages--and they have not disappointed.

In his book on the subject, Adrian Goldsworthy writes, “Only the Romans viewed every war as a life and death struggle, refusing to consider defeat while they had any means of carrying on the fight, and always pursuing total victory.” To Rome, the war with Carthage, while started over a local land-grab by a Sicilian tribe, became one of national pride and a chance to solidify its position on the world stage. With the conquest of the Italian peninsula, Rome was now the prime threat to Carthage’s hegemony. In the coming clash, Rome expected “total victory or their own annihilation,” writes Goldsworthy.

After 23 years, the First Punic War ended in Carthage’s military defeat, but its will to win remained. In the years following her victory, much like America in 2001, Rome grew complacent in her belief that the surrounding seas ensured security. But like those planes flying into our buildings, those illusions were shattered in 218 BC, when a resurgent Carthaginian army led by Hannibal crossed the Alps into Italy along with a herd of war elephants. For the next two decades Hannibal’s army would ravage Roman lands and Roman legions. After the battle of Cannae alone, some 60,000 Roman corpses (including 80 senators) rotted in the sun. But in the face of this devastating attack on their homeland, the Romans did not submit. They rededicated. And in 202 BC, Rome brought Carthage to its knees--for a while.

With Carthage rising again in the mid-second century BC, Romans demanded that the risk of another attack on their homeland be permanently removed. Rome finally shattered Carthage’s will with the destruction of its armies and capital city.

The parallels between the Punic and Iraq wars are many. Our Carthage is Islamism: a once great civilization that is resurging and threatening our security. We have suffered heartbreaking losses on our own soil and overseas. Constant adaptations are required to effectively fight the ingenious tactics of our enemy. And the struggle already appears that it will span generations.

There is one major distinction, however. Notwithstanding Rome’s flaws, Romans instinctively believed their way of life was worth defending and propagating at all costs. They also believed that any threat, great or small, must be met with unbridled ferocity. There was a time in our history when our “shining city” shared this belief with our ancient, cultural cousin. It is increasingly apparent, however, that our wealth and our will are inversely proportional. In a country of abundance, the thing we most lack is that which will ensure the survival of that abundance.

Since taking power, Democrats on Capital Hill have all but confirmed this with what has become the Weekly Withdrawal Bill. The most recent version sets the dreaded “timetable.” Pelosi & Murtha, Inc. are yet to find one that can pass muster, but they’ve only just begun. Throughout its history, right or wrong, Romans still wanted Rome to win its wars: if only to ensure the continued Romanization of the world. Sadly the same cannot be said of today’s Democrats. The ideals of FDR, Truman, and JFK are but memories of a once great and confident party. American soldiers must now fight the Mahdi in Baghdad and Murtha in Washington.

With Hannibal, Carthage won legendary battles, but the indomitable will of Rome won the war, and history. Every year, we celebrate our freedom in a month named for Julius Caesar. A billion Catholics look to Rome for spiritual guidance. And millions of tourists flock to Rome to discover the roots of our Western ideals. Meanwhile, the ruins of Carthage lie below modern Tunis, which, until 1993, was headquarters of terrorist Yassar Arafat’s PLO.

Regardless of how it began, we are in Iraq now. Anything less than total victory should be unacceptable to Americans. And those that place any obstruction in the way of that victory should be held to account.