Six months ago yesterday, we were told (for the umpteenth time) that things in Iraq were just about to get better:

BAGHDAD, Iraq Dec 5, 2006 (AP)

The U.S. military expects all of Iraq to be under the control of Iraqi forces by mid-2007, the top American military spokesman in the country said Tuesday.

"We would expect to see the entire country having reached provincial Iraqi control by early fall of next year," Maj. Gen. William Caldwell said at a news conference. "We should see the complete transfer of command and control of all Iraqi army divisions by late spring, early summer."
…

Al-Maliki, in an interview with ABC the day of the summit, said Iraqi forces would be ready.

"I can tell you that by next June, our forces will take over the security of the country," he said.

Well, here it is in June — six months (and 615 dead Americans) later.  And what does General Petreus say?

We haven’t started the surge — the full surge — yet. So let me have a few months.

Groan.