Should the US stay in Afghanistan or not withdraw from Afghanistan?

[Better Believe It]

These are the options available to President Obama according to military and civilian advisors to Obama.

Which of these White House options do you think Obama should take?

[WonderGrunion]

1. Push Poll!!!!

Kicked an Unrecced

[vaberella]

2. Hah!. n/t

[Lord Helmet]

3. push poll k 'n u

[bigwillq]

4. Send all the troops OUT

of Afghanistan.

[DailyGrind51]

5. Trrops should be pulled out of Afghanistan and sent to Illinois to restore rational government.

[Better Believe It]

6. The Suffocatingly Narrow Afghanistan 'Debate'

The Suffocatingly Narrow Afghanistan 'Debate'
by Glenn Greenwald

Washington Post, September 21, 2009:
McChrystal's assessment, in the view of two senior administration officials, is just "one input" in the White House's decision-making process. The president, another senior administration official said, "has embarked on a very, very serious review of all options."

Associated Press, October 5, 2009:
The White House said Monday that President Barack Obama is not considering a strategy for Afghanistan that would withdraw U.S. troops from the eroding war there.

Apparently, "all options" does not mean "all options." As usual for American wars, examining "all options" means everything other than "ending the war." That's what accounts for this:



If one were to add the various military actions from the last several decades that aren't on this list -- our constant covert wars in Central America; our involvement in the Balkans; our invasions of Somalia, Haiti, Grenada, and Panama, etc. etc. -- that is as pure a picture of a perpetual war state as one can imagine.

Obama yesterday met with 30 members of Congress from both parties to discuss the various possibilities for Afghanistan and, according to The New York Times, "some Democrats said they would support whatever he decided." In particular:

"The one thing that I thought was interesting was that everyone, Democrats and Republicans, said whatever decision you make, we’ll support it basically," said Senator Harry Reid, the majority leader.

That's not how things are supposed to work. There's not really any point in having a Congress if its members are simply going to tell the President: "whatever decision you make, we’ll support it basically." That was the same mentality that led House Democrats -- reluctantly, they claimed -- to vote for the war supplemental bill two months ago, appropriating another $106 billion for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan:

Please read the complete article at:

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2009/10/07-8

[Aramchek]

7. every time you post, Nelson Mandela cries...

[Better Believe It]

8. Poster # 7 is on my ignore list.

He/she is probably one of those posters who stalks DU'ers who express any criticism of President Obama's policies.

[IndianaGreen]

9. The White House already put the 'Peace Option' off the table, like LBJ did in 1965

This will not end well.

[avaistheone1]

10. Shut down this amoral ass stupid war.

[IndianaGreen]

11. All we will get out of Afghanistan is more graves in our national cemeteries

It is particularly jarring that cutting bait was put off the table right off the bat, just like single payer was. In 1963 President Kennedy decided to cut bait in Vietnam. Sadly, he was assassinated a week later.

[avaistheone1]

12. We put off the table our leaders removing key issues from the table

that our important to us - like withdrawal from Afghanistan, and single payer health care.


Where is the demonstration of our representative government with this?

[IndianaGreen]

13. If voting changed anything, they'd make it illegal

"If voting changed anything, they'd make it illegal." -

-- Emma Goldman