"Afghanistan is bigger than Iraq, more rugged, more impoverished and vastly more complicated, with more languages, more ethnic groups, more tribes and more lethal neighbors."
"Where there is a real military presence, it is possible to bring peace and development to Afghanistan. But where there are no foreign troops, there is often anarchy. Though European governments like to draw a line between bringing 'security' and engaging in counter-terrorism in Afghanistan, on the ground those missions blur."
Anne Applebaum, Willing To Win in Afghanistan? The Washington Post (Op-Ed), September 16, 2008.
I live between the Pentagon and Fort Belvoir - and I can total up more total "tour days" in Afghanistan than Iraq for my military friends (and their children). Stay informed, and remember all the NATO troops stationed there in our prayers.
3 comments:
Sitting here wondering now why Afghanistan falls off our radar screens so easily.
The situations between Afghanistan and Iraq are so vastly different. Now we step over the line in Pakistan (which is a huge, huge, huge mistake... and one we will likely regret).
We just cannot get it right in the middle east. Why? Well, imho, Iraq was about oil and we had no business doing what we did under the guise of WMDs etc. Not that Saddam was great guy--he was obviously anything but.
The world needed to get involved with Afghanistan because of the human right atrocities, etc. Yet, we have not make equal commitments to Africa (which has a whole 'nother set of facts, so they are not, imho to be viewed exclusively in this light). And I am anything but an expert on either.
I heard this a.m. that the Bush administration was sent a strongly worded message on the Pakistan situation from the intelligence community. It was ignored.
What I have always wondered is WHY we even bother collecting opinions from experts if they are roundly ignored? Would be cheaper not to have them at all if one has instincts leaning toward dictatorship.
We have made such a mess of things, and not the economy... and in an election year that is so critically important.
Sigh x Sigh.
IMHO, Bush would have scored a success for the ages if he had stuck to finding Osama Bin Laden and left Iraq alone. Bush, being Bush, could not figure that out and Karl Rove, for all his smarts, fell down here.
And, how do we know that Sarah Palin is not Dick Cheney in disguise? Has anyone ever seen Palin and Cheney on the same stage at the same time?
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