Increasingly, everywhere Americans look they see a discouragingly familiar story edging its way back onto their television screens. After a relatively quiet period, the "war on terror" has reared its ugly head once again. For most of us, it is no surprise. For others who have bought into the Administration's 'surge is working' line, this might come as somewhat of a shock.

One has difficulty in choosing to look to Iraq or to Afghanistan for our daily dose of bad news.

In Afghanistan, it just gets worse and worse. Security has become so bad that at a recent military parade in Kabul, President Karzai was amidst raging gunfire as they played the national anthem. We witnessed VIPs, parliamentarians, the President's entourage and military officers ducking for cover as gunfire sounded in the background.

The United States Department today released data showing the worsening situation in the land of the Taliban and al-Qaida. Matthew Lee writes for The Huffington Post:

" Al-Qaida has rebuilt some of its pre-Sept. 11 capabilities from remote hiding places in Pakistan, leading to a jump in attacks last year in that country and neighboring Afghanistan, the Bush administration said Wednesday. Attacks in Pakistan doubled between 2006 and 2007 and the number of fatalities quadrupled, the State Department said in its annual terrorism report. In Afghanistan, the number of attacks rose 16 percent, to 1,127 incidents last year. The report says attacks in Iraq dipped slightly between 2006 and 2007, but they still accounted for 60 percent of worldwide terrorism fatalities, including 17 of the 19 Americans who were killed in attacks last year. The other two were killed in Afghanistan."

The United States military is calling for Afghanistan's own version of the surge. CNN reports that what we have sent an additional 3,500 troops but commanders in the field are calling for another 12,000 more. None of our allies have shown a willingness to increase their troop levels and so it appears that we might send that many more American troops. Meanwhile, to survive, much of the country, under the iron fists of local warlords, has seen an unprecedented acceleration of the heroin trade.

In Iraq, there had been a modest statistical decrease in the bombings throughout the last year but, sadly, they have recently and unrelentingly escalated. Even the supposedly securely reinforced "Green Zone" now appears to be under siege by bombings on a daily basis. And, with April registering 47 American soldiers dead - the highest monthly tally in seven months - this shameful quagmire keeps taking its terrible toll. Clearly, after five years of warfare in both countries, the results are appallingly disappointing. No one can claim in Iraq that the people are better off than they were five years ago. We seem to be no closer in Afghanistan in defeating those who caused September 11th.

Maybe it is time to review the entire process and see what is in our national interest and what options are open for alternative solutions.