Clinton, Obama, Afghanistan and YOU

[Goodnevil]

It seems that both of our primary candidates have been shifting their foreign policy focus to increasing our presence in Afghanistan while simultaneously reducing our presence in Iraq. Does anyone else think this is rather counterproductive as well as Bushian?

Ask the Russians, the Mongols, the British or the Ottomans how easy an opponent the average entrenched Afghan is!

Why are we shifting our foreign policy focus to the Afghan theater? Honest opinions required here, please - any strategic value to quelching the Taliban resistance?

[politicaholic]

1. Government needs to be allowed to leave Kabul...

Right now there doesn't seem to be any say for the government to establish any type of control or rules to be democratic, theorcratic, or otherwise.

[gateley]

2. When it comes to foreign policy,

I always look to Biden for guidance.

He feels that Afghanistan is where we should be focused - where we ALWAYS should have been focused. We never should have turned away and gone into Iraq (as we all know). Now, Pakistan is experiencing unrest (another area Biden has always had on his radar), making it easier for Al Q to recruit and foment more unrest with the ultimate prize being nukes AND delivery systems in one convenient country.

Don't you think we SHOULD reduce our presence in Iraq? Biden asked for $150,000,000 for Afghanistan recently -- One Hundred And Fifty MILLION -- chump change -- and was told we didn't have the money, it's all going to Iraq. (And now, possibly to Iran, who knows?)

EDIT: Here's an interesting piece with Kerry and Biden talking about the situation in Pakistan and Afghanistan:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/02/26/biden-afghanistan-the-f_n_88547.html

EDIT again: Here's what Biden believes should be our plan for Afghanistan:

http://biden.senate.gov/issues/issue/?id=3293310d-b924-4f6f-ad1e-0e10ed218cb9

[Goodnevil]

4. I do think we should reduce our presence in Iraq

but I'm not sure if the answer is to shift our troop strength to Afghanistan...seems like sort of a bait and switch shell game.

I'm in favor of sending a blackhawk special forces detachment to Pakistan and take bin laden out. We'll make a martyr out of him but the world will rally to us. Just a thought.

In my opinion, we need to cut our support to Israel, reduce our dependence on foreign oil and exctricate ourselves from the middle east.

[gateley]

5. I don't disagree with any of your statements.

I think the focus on Afghanistan IS to take out bin Laden and Al Q. And Biden isn't suggesting moving our troops en masse to that area -- he said a single brigade could do it. So, sending a force to Afghanistan and bringing our troops home from Iraq could be accomplished simultaneously.

And amen to extricating ourselves from the ME. But no, now this administration wants to add Iran to the mix. :grr:

[Goodnevil]

6. Yah, but is Bin Laden in Afghanistan?

I thought that he was in Pakistan?

[gateley]

7. I think he's believed to be in the area of the

Pakistan/Afghanistan boarder, which is a no-man's land. As Biden says, the "border" is just a line on a map -- not an official border crossing type set-up.

[reggie the dog]

3. I agree with you.

President Sarkozy recently sent more troops to Afghanistan. We will never win there. The Russians could not win, we will not win. We should get out of Afghanistan. The Taliban had nothing to do with 911. The young American who was put in jail as the "American Taliban" should be freed, after all the Taliban was our ALLY up until we invaded Afghanistan, early in September 2001 the US government gave millions if not billions in aid to them because they were so good at ridding Afghanistan of poppies. When the "American Taliban" joined up with them he was helping an ally. The Taliban were at war with 4 armed factions and let Al Quieda exist because Al Quieda never declared war against the Taliban, so they had a live and let live policy while the Taliban was busy fighting with the other factions. The Taliban never, to my knowledge, helped Bin Laden or anyone having to do with 9-11. We should have never fought against the Taliban AS THEY WERE OUR ALLY. We botched the effort to capture Bin Laden in Afghanistan and we should have never declared war on the Taliban as they could have helped us, but no, we just demonized the whole country and all their different ethnic groups.

[CRK7376]

8. I don't have a problem with

Afghanistan. I've already served there. That's where OBL started this mess. I don't mind beefing up our presence there either, but I don't think that would help much. I definitely do not support what Shrub did sending us into Iraq.