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Health & Fitness

Afghanistan: It's Time to Leave

Ghosts of Afghanistan by Richard Steele provides a sobering assessment of our war in Afghanistan.

Afghanistan: It’s Time to Leave

“59 percent of likely voters nationwide want the troops to come home (from Afghanistan) either immediately or within a year.” Rasmussin Poll, 12/01/2011.
“Just 29 percent of Likely U.S. Voters now think it is still possible for the United States to win the war in Afghanistan, down from 34 percent a year ago and down from 51 percent in December, 2009," Rasmussin Poll, December 20, 2011.

Our goal of weakening and virtually eliminating Al-Qaeda in Afghanistan has been achieved. Now we are in the middle of a civil war between the Taliban and the government of the week or ”weak.” We are viewed as occupiers. No one wants a foreign army taking up residence in their country. Although Al- Qaeda is seriously weakened in Afghanistan, it has been a fatal game of whack-a-mole,smack them down there and they pop up somewhere else, in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia. The military’s new focus on more intelligence, the use of small strike forces and drones to attack Al- Qaeda operatives appears to be the way to get this done. A large scale military operation does not seem to be effective plus it alienates the local population.

Hawk or dove, you will be enlightened by reading Ghosts of Afghanistan: The Haunted Battleground written by Jonathan Steele. The book gives the reader a deeper understanding of the recent history and cultures of Afghanistan, the decades of war, the Soviet era and the progress (or lack thereof) of our longest war ever. Steele says: “Obama’s war (it is his war now) is uncomfortably similar to the one the Russians fought in the 1980s. At its heart is a long running civil war among Afghans into which foreigners have unwisely intervened.” A US military official, quoted by Steele states:  “What we figured out is that people aren’t really anti-US or anti-anything; they just want to be left alone. Our presence is what’s destabilizing this area.”

Steele examines 13 common myths about Afghanistan, for example, myth #12: “The Taliban are uniquely harsh oppressors of Afghan women.”  Steele’s exploration of an exit strategy that could end decades of war for Afghanistan is particularly interesting. After reading this book, I was convinced that a negotiated peace, soon, would be in our best interests as well as the interests of Afghans and the region. Regardless of your stance on the war, this book will give you a better understanding of a conflict in which heroic young Americans are being killed and wounded and where we spending billions of dollars, while back at home we struggle with unemployment, a weakened economy and listen to political debates about who is responsible for our huge deficit. We rarely hear anyone claiming the deficit may be related to the trillions of dollars we spent on warfare in the past ten years.

Here are a few interesting facts about Afghanistan, listed by Steele:

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  • Afghanistan is the poorest country in the world. Annual per capita income is $906. 
  • Life expectancy is 44.6 years. 
  • One of five children die before the age of five.
  • Untapped mineral riches may exceed $1 trillion.
  • Literacy rate: MALE 41%; FEMALE 12% (CIA World Factbook)

Even though military operations continue, there are indications that “secret” talks are occurring between the Taliban and the US. Although popular opinion says let’s get out, many believe that bailing out now would be disrespectful of our servicemen and women and sully our reputation as a world power. However, with the right approach we can achieve peace, leave, support our military and be proud of the job they have done with such great sacrifice.

Listen to the ghosts. let’s get out.

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