I'm not going to wait until I hear what Obama has to say. Our economy is struggling....over 10% of people are out of work....so why are we wasting our resources in Afghanistan? Historically speaking, many nations tried to conquer Afghanistan....and they failed. This is another quagmire....just like Iraq. I would think that we should have learned the lessons of Vietnam....about being involved in a protracted struggle overseas....but apparently we have not learned this lesson.
By the way, to the best of my knowledge, Obama never served in our military. What gives him the right to send our young soldiers into harm's way?
Regardless of what I think about afghanistan, Obama is President and the Commander and Chief has ever right to send young men into harm's way. We elected to make those decisions!
The mission we had after 9/11 was to declare war on terrorism by capturing Osama bin Laden and we still haven't done that after 8 years. As Obama said we aren't going to fight this war endlessly, and he has given Afghanistan a time line for taking responsibility for their country. He said all troops, including allies will be out by 2012 and we have every reason to believe he will stick to it. This is a war we can't win, but by not reinforcing our troop strength, we endanger the lives of those who are already there. Soldiers who have fought and died up till now will have done so in vain if we give in to terrorists and withdraw our military. These extremists have no intention of a peaceful settlement, so what recourse does the U.S. and our allies have?
Why does America continue to fight oppression in Pakistan and Afghan? It doesn't appear they want or need our help, or if they do, they're not doing enough to help themselves. It's a rational decision by Obama to give them a deadline in setting goals and accomplishing them for their countries.
Phil....this may be so....but I disagree with Obama.
jilly....I heard the same argument about Vietnam....we have to stay in Vietnam because if we don't, the commies will take over all of southeast Asia....the Domino Theory. 58,200+ of my brothers are dead (including some of my buddies I served with in Vietnam)....billions of dollars were wasted....and the Vietnam War tore this country apart. Why do we continue to waste our resources in Iraq and Afghanistan? I know that these young soldiers will eventually come home, but they will be all busted up inside of themselves. It's called PTSD....I know this is true, because I have PTSD....and they will never be the same again.
The aggressors of terrorism are not the same as Vietnam. They've already attacked us on our own soil, as well as in England. Do you think they will just go away? I think we all naively believe we are being protected but even with the FBI and CIA it's just not happening. These people are plotting attacks and will carry them out even with the sophisticated surveillance systems we have in place.
I feel so bad for those who come home beaten and broken. This is a violent world, and soldiers don't deserve to have to deal with prosthetic limbs, wheelchairs or psychiatric problems. My son's two friends are both military and one still has shrapnel that can't be operated on. They're both so sweet. When I visited them they had camouflage shower curtains, and the American flag on the wall, plus all of their medals on display. They were both officers with men under their command. One just got married at West Point and is in FBI school in Quantico, VA.
Like Colin Powell told Dubya - you break it and its yours. Unfortunately its part of Obama's inheritance along with all the other messes that Dubya left behind.
I am totally against the war and I have been all along. We will have to see how it goes....I must say, when we "conquer enemies, they are replaced by more enemies and the beat goes on....
With a very shaky nuclear Pakistan next door, we cannot afford to let the Taliban and Al Queda take over Afghanistan. As to the citizens, they want a stable and secure country with opportunity to support their families. They will support whoever can provide that. We had a good shot at securing and stabilizing the country after 2002. Had we not been distracted into Iraq we would have done just that. This is our last shot at doing that and assisting in keeping Pakistan from falling - and with that nuclear weapons going to radical Islamists.
doowoplover, I fully accept your right to having a different of opinion with Obama, but not saying he is not qualified to make decisions about the use of military. I agree that most returnees suffer from PSTD and that we as a society have an obligation to recognize and offer treatment for the emotional damage sending people to war inflicts.
I am on both sides of this debate. I agree Afghanistan needs to be stabilized so that Al Queda can not again take root there. I don't know whether i believe we need to totally eliminate the Taliban. Although I disagree with their views if they are elected by a province I am not sure we should be involved in overthrowing them.
Pakistan worries me as much or more than Afghanistan. I am not sure if our current policies are strong enough there to make sure they do not allow Al Queda to take root.
I do think it is difficult for us to understand how much our presence is seen as an unwanted interference in their culture and society. The values are so different and we see ours as so superior to theirs that it is a wide gap.
