I'd like to invite you to this new blog, of which several North Jersey residents are members.
It is an outgrowth of shared ideas principally between 5 people that has now moved into the blog format.
I invite you to read, learn, teach, share and most importantly, participate in our body politic.
Friday, March 27, 2009
More troops to Afghanistan
So the President that promised to bring our troops back is sending more troops to Afghanistan. Another broken campaign promise and the media just spins it as the right thing to do. The double standard is unbelievable.
"WASHINGTON — President Obama’s plan to widen United States involvement in Afghanistan came after an internal debate in which Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. warned against getting into a political and military quagmire, while military advisers argued that the Afghanistan war effort could be imperiled without even more troops.
All of the president’s advisers agreed that the primary goal in the region should be narrow — taking aim at Al Qaeda, as opposed to the vast attempt at nation-building the Bush administration had sought in Iraq. The question was how to get there.
The commanders in the field wanted a firmer and long-term commitment of more combat troops beyond the 17,000 that Mr. Obama had already promised to send, and a pledge that billions of dollars would be found to significantly expand the number of Afghan security forces.
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, pressed for an additional 4,000 troops to be sent to Afghanistan — but only to serve as trainers. They tempered the commanders’ request and agreed to put off any decision to order more combat troops to Afghanistan until the end of this year, when the strategy’s progress could be assessed."
So all this campaign nonsense about we need to bring our troops back and so on and so forth went out the window as soon as he was briefed on the reality on the ground. And how convenient that the media simply forgot about the 2 wars the US is fighting. No criticism whatsoever over this increase in troop deployment. Of course the 4,000 are there just to train for a year and then they will come back. Isn't this story familiar?
I think the comment about getting the troops out of Iraq have nothing to do with troops going to Afganistan. In fact I think that was the plan all along. I don't recall Obama saying that he wasn't going to send troops there. In fact I believe he said all along that it was the original US goal and then everything was shifted to Iraq. Osama Bin Laden has been a target in the beginning and should continue to be. So is Taliban and Al Qaeda. I don't know what the long term strategy is but there is more to fear of what is in Afganistan/Pakistan then what is in Iraq.
And this from the NY Times
ReplyDelete"WASHINGTON — President Obama’s plan to widen United States involvement in Afghanistan came after an internal debate in which Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. warned against getting into a political and military quagmire, while military advisers argued that the Afghanistan war effort could be imperiled without even more troops.
All of the president’s advisers agreed that the primary goal in the region should be narrow — taking aim at Al Qaeda, as opposed to the vast attempt at nation-building the Bush administration had sought in Iraq. The question was how to get there.
The commanders in the field wanted a firmer and long-term commitment of more combat troops beyond the 17,000 that Mr. Obama had already promised to send, and a pledge that billions of dollars would be found to significantly expand the number of Afghan security forces.
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, pressed for an additional 4,000 troops to be sent to Afghanistan — but only to serve as trainers. They tempered the commanders’ request and agreed to put off any decision to order more combat troops to Afghanistan until the end of this year, when the strategy’s progress could be assessed."
So all this campaign nonsense about we need to bring our troops back and so on and so forth went out the window as soon as he was briefed on the reality on the ground. And how convenient that the media simply forgot about the 2 wars the US is fighting. No criticism whatsoever over this increase in troop deployment. Of course the 4,000 are there just to train for a year and then they will come back. Isn't this story familiar?
This is a test
ReplyDeleteI think the comment about getting the troops out of Iraq have nothing to do with troops going to Afganistan. In fact I think that was the plan all along. I don't recall Obama saying that he wasn't going to send troops there. In fact I believe he said all along that it was the original US goal and then everything was shifted to Iraq. Osama Bin Laden has been a target in the beginning and should continue to be. So is Taliban and Al Qaeda. I don't know what the long term strategy is but there is more to fear of what is in Afganistan/Pakistan then what is in Iraq.
ReplyDelete