Afghanistan - the forgotten war?

[BushOut06]

We've been in Afghanistan for over five years now, what have we really accomplished? Osama and Mulla Omar are both free. We've "liberated" parts of Afghanistan, only to see much of it slipping back into strict Taliban-style law. The Taliban are still alive and very well, and in fact are making a nice little comeback.

When we knew that Libya was harboring the terrorists involved in the Pan-Am bombing, we didn't invade Libya. We didn't seek to overthrow Moammar Kadhafi. We imposed harsh sanctions against them, and voila - eventually Libya handed over the suspects for trial. I believe that Libya even agreed to pay compensation to the victims' families.

Point is, in this case, military action has accomplished nothing. I'm afraid that if we do pull troops out of Iraq, they'll be directed into Afghanistan, and it will be more of the same, only a different location. How long is it necessary to keep our troops in Afghanistan on a wild goose chase? Five more years? Ten more? Indefinitely? Especially when it's very likely that the people we're looking for are right across the border in Pakistan, where we're not allowed to go? To me, this seems very reminiscient of Vietnam & Laos.

[sam sarrha]

1. that is where the Heroin is.. and Al Queda is selling it for us.. Afgan-Contra history revisits

[BushOut06]

2. So that's where "Poppy" Bush gets his nickname!

:puke:

[High Plains]

3. Actually, drug czar Walters wants to spray it with herbicides...

Which is pretty stupid. When half the national economy depends on the opium trade, that's a good way to piss off a lot of people. The Taliban is already running around handing out flyers saying "Tired of the infidels and their puppets ruining your crops? We're the Taliban--give us a call."

I must reject this alleged CIA conspiracy connection, too. While I don't think the agency historically has clean hands when it comes to the drug trade, I don't see any evidence it's involved in this. The trade is benefiting the Taliban and Al Qaeda (and a whole bunch of other people, including many, many Afghan government officials).

Hmm, this is a real conundrum for the Americans: The opium trade benefits the insurgents, but trying to disrupt the trade will benefit the insurgents, too.

War on drugs or war on terror. Pick one.

[Disturbed]

4. Afghan Autopsy

Afghan Autopsy

America began its so-called war on terror with the intention of driving the Taliban from power in Afghanistan. Five years later, the Taliban is back, Osama bin Laden is still alive, and insurgent fighters cite the U.S. presence in the country as their main wellspring of rage. How did it come to this? Truthdig contributor Christian Parenti, just back from Afghanistan, reports.
by Christian Parenti

http://www.commondreams.org/views06/1201-23.htm

The Busholini Regime calls Afghanistan a "Success".

:crazy:

[sam sarrha]

6. knowingly doing nothing is complicity.. especially with hollow intensions

[LoneDriver]

7. Seems like drugs and terror are winning this war.

US out of the Mid-East now!

[liberalsoldier5]

5. I'd call it the "Ignored War" more than "Forgotten"

I know a couple guys fighting in Afghanistan right now and they're so happy to be there instead of Iraq. It's this century's "good war." As the troops I know have told me, the people of Afghanistan are much better off today than when the Taliban owned the country. No more state-sponsored beheadings of "lustful" women in public, no more "suspected" homosexuals being crushed to death by concrete. And of course, no more goverment-supported al Qaeda training camps. Admitingly, it's getting rough over there five years later. All the more reason we've got to make the White House redeploy our troops from Iraq to Afghanistan ASAP!!