How To Lose A War
Elliot Gaiser
Issue date: 10/1/09 Section: Opinion
We are a people at war. It's not very often that we think of our warriors in uniform pursuing terrorists across freezing mountain slopes. Still rarer are the times we talk about the daily mounting casualties of our countrymen in the barren deserts of Afghanistan, the primary theatre of the ongoing conflict against the fundamentalist Islamo-fascists who declared war on all of us eight Septembers ago. Between the deaths of pop-star celebrities and the raging debate on health care, the media just doesn't often mention this very real battle. And things aren't going so well for us there.
President Barack Obama seems willing to lose the war in Afghanistan, and all for the sake of maintaining his political esteem.
Every day we plod away from decisive victory, and more of our soldiers fall. Recently, the Wall Street Journal ran a headline that read "Taliban Now Winning." Gen. Stanley McCrystal, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, notes that emboldened militants are moving out of their strongholds along the Pakistan border into usually stable regions in the north and west.
"[I]t's a fact that the Taliban are occupying about a third of the country," Sen. Lindsay Graham, R-S.C., said in an interview with Fox News on Sept. 23.
Why is America suddenly losing, even with 21,000 troops the President issued into the theatre in March?
Two words: Political correctness. That's the best description for the new rules of engagement (ROE) implemented by Gen. McCrystal with urging from the Obama administration, supposedly to reduce civilian casualties.
But now our U.S. troops in a firefight are denied any air or artillery support unless they can verify that no civilians are present. If even one civilian appears during a combat situation, American soldiers are ordered to "break contact" - or turn and retreat.
No wonder the Taliban is advancing. The Russians, who lost their own war in the region, are likely feeling justified when formerly peaceful regions become battle-torn as U.S. troops are ordered to leave the field.
President Barack Obama seems willing to lose the war in Afghanistan, and all for the sake of maintaining his political esteem.
Every day we plod away from decisive victory, and more of our soldiers fall. Recently, the Wall Street Journal ran a headline that read "Taliban Now Winning." Gen. Stanley McCrystal, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, notes that emboldened militants are moving out of their strongholds along the Pakistan border into usually stable regions in the north and west.
"[I]t's a fact that the Taliban are occupying about a third of the country," Sen. Lindsay Graham, R-S.C., said in an interview with Fox News on Sept. 23.
Why is America suddenly losing, even with 21,000 troops the President issued into the theatre in March?
Two words: Political correctness. That's the best description for the new rules of engagement (ROE) implemented by Gen. McCrystal with urging from the Obama administration, supposedly to reduce civilian casualties.
But now our U.S. troops in a firefight are denied any air or artillery support unless they can verify that no civilians are present. If even one civilian appears during a combat situation, American soldiers are ordered to "break contact" - or turn and retreat.
No wonder the Taliban is advancing. The Russians, who lost their own war in the region, are likely feeling justified when formerly peaceful regions become battle-torn as U.S. troops are ordered to leave the field.
Viewing Comments 1 - 3 of 3
07 grad
posted 10/03/09 @ 10:21 AM EST
This post is way off.
To bomb, or not to bomb is not the question here. It's not like there is a line in the sand. This is about counter-insurgency strategy. (Continued…)
Pete Miller
posted 10/05/09 @ 3:11 PM EST
This isn't about counter-insurgency strategy, it isn't even about political correctness. It's simple. It's about whether or not we win. That's it. Obama needs to take of his skirt, put the boots on and give our troops whatever they need to win. (Continued…)
Stew Rock
posted 10/07/09 @ 11:42 PM EST
Amazing, just amazing.
The way you "win" this war is to leave. The american people do not have the backbone to win a religious based war as we did in World War 2. (Continued…)
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