Political & Elections

I don't actually think anybody believes anybody can win a war in Afghanistan. They have been at war for decades in that country. It destroyed Russia's military.

One of the biggest issues we face in a country like Afghanistan is that we really do not understand the paradigm. It is the same in certain countries in Africa.

As Americans we have this image of nations which include states and federal governments and everything being electronically interconnected, and interconnected by roads and rails and airports.

These are tribal countries. They have nothing to do with national government. That's why we can't "win" hearts and minds. They simply live a very different way than we do, and not understanding this? We just waste the lives of our soldiers, most importantly, and our ecnomic resources, secondarily.

If we must use military force in these countries? The best option, IMO, is to use our special forces, strategically and, as needed, and not to commit to this type of old fashioned "war" which has nothing to do with these incredbly disconnected villages and insurmountable boundaries and terrain.

YMMV

-- Edited by poetgrl on Thursday 25th of November 2010 07:54:10 AM

-- Edited by poetgrl on Thursday 25th of November 2010 07:55:30 AM

Obama seriously doesn't want to be in Afghanistan. I think he can see that it's a fool's errand at this point. The problem is, no matter what he does, it will be the wrong thing
as far as the opposition is concerned. According to it, a significant troop surge was the way to go---until he implimented that surge. Now that it's proven largely ineffective, we are bogged down in "Obama's War." If we pull out, and Al qaeda returns from Pakistan to resume their Anti-American terrorist operations, they'll say Obama "cut and ran." There are only two choices: stay and pay and pay and pay (in both riches and American lives), or Leave, and risk a return to the status quo that spawned 911.

Pretend you're President. What would you do?

My only fear is that centuries from now, the kids taking "AP World History" will be reading in their textbooks how America's follies in Afghanistan led to it's fall in the same way that Rome's over-extension of ITS empire in Gaul and Ancient Britain helped lead to ITS fall.

Sigh....