The Afghan people deserve a real chance at Peace,
that is why I support President Obama and the Troop increase.
Sean Lewis
December 1, 2009
The moment Rumsfeld denied the Military Generals request to
send addition troops into Tora Bora to capture or kill
Bin Laden, that was the moment that a swift and
long lasting victory against terrorism was forever lost.
We have been fighting a mismanaged war of attrition
and will ever since that moment.
The will of Al-Qaeda would have been crushed if
Bin Laden had been quickly brought to justice. The
exact opposite occurred when Bin laden was allowed to
escape. It not only allowed Al-Qaeda to re-constitute
itself but also energized multiple terrorist organizations
through out the world.
These organizations now knew that not only could they
strike at America, but they could also do so and live to
reap the benefits of such a successful attack.
Had the US actually completed the task of capturing or
killing Bin Laden the post war Afghanistan theater of
operations would have been one of reconstruction not
continued warfare.
Unfortunately this is not what occurred.
Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda found sanctuary in Pakistan
and reestablished itself as a nebulous enemy with
no central point to attack and thus be able to eradicate
it. Such a swift and quick victory will never be available again.
In fact the ability to win militarily may no longer be an option.
This option was squandered by Rumsfeld, time,
constant war, incompetence, torture and no clear plan or
strategy have turned the population in Afghanistan into
angry participants in a war not of their choosing.
What President Obama may be trying to do is to
make an untenable situation at least salvageable.
To do this he is willing to do what the Bush Administration
under Rumsfeld failed to done.
Fight the war the correct way with a clear strategy and
exit.
Simply put, for 8 years the war was not fought to attain
a long term victory, but merely to win in the short term.
These are not the same things as time has clearly proven.
President Obama wants to try to correct a monumental
mistake. To TRULY stabilize the region so that the population
has a real opportunity to establish their own government
that may be able to withstand the influence of both the
Taliban and Al-Qaeda.
America had no business in trying to establish a US
style democracy in another Country. This is a recipe
for certain failure.
It is one thing to free a people from tyranny, but they will
quickly reject their rescuers if they are merely shackled
to another form of forced governance.
This is exactly what the Bush Administration did, they
merely changed one form of forced governance for
another, neither of which were the actual will of
the Afghan people.
The best President Obama can hope for after 8 years
of utter incompetent Presidential oversight in the
execution of military action in Afghanistan, is a country that
can remain stable and not once again come under the influence
of the Taliban and Al-Qaeda.
It is a long shot, but that doesn't mean the Afghan people
do not deserve the opportunity to actually have the ability
for real reform in a safe and stable environment that is
created by overwhelming military force, securing the peace.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/12/1/81844/7221?new=true
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