I stand corrected, as comments in the past two posts directly address the Afghanistan question, even if answering with uncertainty. I find myself leaning towards Master Fu's argument for the Biden position which is essentially limited and surgical without totally giving up. One wonders if it eventually leads to escalation, maybe not with this President, but perhaps keeping it as Special Ops as possible will keep it off the public radar as well, for better or worse.
New news or new no news,
the President met today with Congressional leaders for a frank discussion where he said he would not substantially reduce troop levels and
assured them that, "that his decision won't make everybody in the room or the nation happy." Agreed, no matter what he decides. After all, even in his own Party, there's a bill being introduced from the left by Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) to
cut off any funding for a troop increase in Afghanistan, while Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) is calling for massive troop increases.
Meanwhile, NATO says that while 8 U.S. soldiers may have been killed in that big eastern Afghanistan battle this past weekend,
over 100 enemy fighters were killed as well. Suspicious number? Is this like Vietnam again -- what day of the month is it = # of Vietcong reported killed by U.S. forces?
Master Fu does question the value of Afghanistan. We can't deny the threat -- the man at the center of the recently foiled bomb plot in NYC was an Afghan immigrant, Najibullah Zazi, trained at an Al Qaeda camp in Pakistan. This is the threat that the Dems have run on, the threat they said Cheney/Bush took our eye off of in pursuit of the man who did not attack us. And then there's
China's stake in the country, per Robert D. Kaplan:
In Afghanistan, American and Chinese interests converge. By exploiting Afghanistan’s metal and mineral reserves, China can provide thousands of Afghans with jobs, thus generating tax revenues to help stabilize a tottering Kabul government. Just as America has a vision of a modestly stable Afghanistan that will no longer be a haven for extremists, China has a vision of Afghanistan as a secure conduit for roads and energy pipelines that will bring natural resources from the Indian Ocean and elsewhere. So if America defeats Al Qaeda and the irreconcilable elements of the Taliban, China’s geopolitical position will be enhanced.
This is not a paradox, since China need not be our future adversary. Indeed, combining forces with China in Afghanistan might even improve the relationship between Washington and Beijing. The problem is that while America is sacrificing its blood and treasure, the Chinese will reap the benefits. The whole direction of America’s military and diplomatic effort is toward an exit strategy, whereas the Chinese hope to stay and profit.
Just when you think you're starting to make sense of it, things just get more Confusistaning.
