Tag Archives: Afghanistan

The corruption of American exceptionalism

Posted on September 16, 2012 by Terry| 1 Comment
American Exceptionalism?

Is THIS what defines America? What makes us great? What makes us "strong"?

I had a recent post on a different blog topic where someone asked why it (supposedly) was that Obama is “more angry” at the maker of the offensive film about Muslims, than he was about the attacks on U.S. interests.  That’s obviously not true, but what strikes me is the attitude many Americans have adopted about recent events, including politicians and others who should know better.

It seems that what many Americans want Obama to do is to start to threaten retaliation for the recent attacks, to show “American strength”.  Obama, of course, is doing what he has to do in this situation…walk a very fine line, making it clear that such attacks will not be tolerated, while at the same time stopping short of aggravating the situation by further angering those with grievances against America.  It’s an impossible situation.  Muslim culture just doesn’t recognize the same freedom of speech that we enjoy.  They simply can’t comprehend that such a film could be produced in America, without the express consent of the government and its people.  They view it as an attack on their belief system, with the backing of the American government.  It’s a ridiculous notion of course, to hold an entire nation accountable for the actions of a handful of people.  But if Obama handled the situation the way Romney and Ryan said they would have handled it?  We’d be looking at even more bloodshed right now.

What bothers me is that the Romney/Ryan/Conservative/Republican reaction to the events of the past week is so pervasive in America.  There seems to be this line of thinking that the U.S., the most powerful nation on earth, can dictate foreign events like some puppet master pulling the strings.  There seems to be a line of thinking that ANY world event, ANY foreign entity that goes against American interests, should be threatened into submission, that our military might alone is what dictates American power.

In short, American exceptionalism has been co-opted by those who believe that American Might is what makes America what it is.  It’s a complete corruption of the idea of American exceptionalism, the belief that we’ve “got it right” in terms of our freedoms and system of governance.  To far too many Americans, “American Exceptionalism” means that other people’s systems of governance, or at a more basic level, other people’s belief systems, are unimportant compared to American ideals.  It’s ironic that American exceptionalism, built on the incredible freedoms we enjoy, has been corrupted such that far too many Americans think we should simply impose our will on others who may not share our beliefs.

It’s a belief that is SO ingrained in Americans, that even at a time of economic crisis, where the very long-term survival of our nation may be at stake, that military spending is “untouchable”.  For fools like Romney, Ryan, and much of the Right, they believe it’s the American military that is what makes us strong, what defines us.  It also seems that a complete disrespect for “un-American” belief systems goes hand-in-hand with this focus on military superiority.  Might makes right!  Our military, along with our supposedly “superior” belief system, means that simply threatening military action or retaliation should be enough to quell the violence that’s occurring right now.

Such a paradigm is destroying our way of life, not making us stronger.  Instead of investing in our future, we’re spending more than the rest of the world, combined, on a military that is simply irrelevant in bringing long-term peace to areas like the Middle East.  After 10 years in Iraq and Afghanistan…is America “stronger”?  Have we done ANYTHING to solve the long-term issues in the Middle East?  Or has this corrupted version of American exceptionalism just ensured that future generations in the Middle East will grow up resenting, and even hating, this foreign power that tries to impose their will on people’s of the Middle East?

It’s scary what’s happening in the Middle East right now.  It’s scary how misguided the people are who are involved in the violence.  But it’s also scary to look at American attitudes back home, and the belief that American “might” should be used to counteract the violence.

Posted in Culture Wars, Politics

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Winning the battles on terror, losing the war

Posted on June 7, 2012 by Terry| 2 Comments
Pakistan

We're winning the war against Al Qaeda. The cost? Turning an entire region against us in the long-term, including former ally Pakistan.

Three successful drone strikes in recent days have killed some VERY high-ranking Al Qaeda members.  Good news, right?  Yes, no doubt.  But, those drone strikes have occurred in Pakistani territory.  Leon Panetta has come out condemning Pakistan for allowing safe haven to fighters who attack U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan, who then retreat to Pakistan for relative safety from retaliation.  Panetta says we’re “not going to take it” any more.

I find it amazing that Repubs still attack Obama for being soft on defense.  It sure helps when the entire Republican party seems to be made up of a bunch of dim-witted fools who believe anything their leaders tell them.  Repubs continue to use the attack because their idiot backers continue to believe ANYTHING that’s anti-Obama.  This despite the incredible successes Obama has had in combatting terrorism and dismantling Al Qaeda.

The continuing, bold drone attacks in Pakistan continue a very aggressive defense policy from Obama, policies that Republicans would be DROOLING over…IF it were a Republican in the Oval Office.

With that said…it’s a loser of a long-term strategy.  Afghanis themselves want the U.S. out.  It’s been over 10 years for god’s sake.  We’re occupiers in their minds now, not liberators.   Pakistanis?  I’m definitely not sympathetic to Pakistan for their role in underhandedly supporting violence in Afghanistan, but despite any recent successes in killing Al Qaeda personnel within Pakistani territory…it’s a loser of a long-term strategy.

Obama’s long-term military strategy clearly puts an emphasis on Asia (e.g., China) with a de-emphasis of the Middle East.  But the damage has already been done in the Middle East.  10+ years of active war in the region will do that.  There’s no doubt that U.S. actions in the Middle East in the past decade have further strengthened the impression that the U.S. is a bully in the region, uncaring about the people themselves, and only interested in protecting oil resources.  It’s a HELL of a tough line (heck, an impossible line) for Obama to walk…keeping a continued, active, and aggressive military presence in the region, while attempting to sway regional powers to support the cause.

Despite the successes in killing Al Qaeda leaders with cross-border drone strikes, there is also no doubt that hundreds of innocent Pakistani’s have lost their lives.  Despite Panetta’s bluster…it simply can’t continue long-term.  We’ve dismantled Al Qaeda in the Middle East.  Obama has had been an aggressive, extremely effective leader in the war on terror.  But at what cost?

We already had a boatload of enemies in the Middle East.  We’ve also been doing a hell of a good job at turning one-time U.S. allies into likely long-term enemies.  We can now add Pakistan to the ever-growing list of countries in the region that resent the U.S. influence in the region.  In the short-term?  We can survive it, given the devastating blow we’ve accomplished against Al Qaeda in the region.

In the long-term? We’ve alienated another nationality in the region, and created yet another long-term breeding ground for anti-U.S. terrorists.   We’re winning the battle against Al Qaeda…but losing the war in the region.

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Santorum, Romney, McCain: Hairy Old White Men

Posted on March 5, 2012 by Terry| 3 Comments
Grumpy McCain

John McCain gets a little grumpy when we go a few days without the sweet sound of American bombs falling on foreign soil. Hence the calls to start bombing Syria.

You gotta love Repubs for daring to bash Obama for his foreign policy.  After a Bush presidency where we started 2 ill-fated wars and ruined America’s reputation overseas, I find it a bit ridiculous for Republicans to bash the foreign policy of a Obama administration that has overseen the fall of Bin Laden and Gaddafi and conducted a daring  hostage rescue in the past 12 months.  But of course Republicans won’t let little things like facts stand in their way, and so as always, Republicans are tripping over themselves to make themselves sound as hawkish as possible.

Just in the last couple of days, we’ve heard calls from John McCain to bomb Syria.  Mitt Romney, he of zero foreign policy experience, says HE would stop Iran from getting a nuclear bomb.  Rick Santorum also says that HE would be “tougher” than Obama when it comes to Iran.

What the hell is with (again, my wife’s phrase) “hairy old white men” and the need to thump their chests and act like warmongers?  Particularly, REPUBLICAN hairy old white men?   DO these idiots REALLY think it’s a great idea to start another war in the Middle East?   Look at what happened in Afghanistan after we accidentally burned a few Korans.  10 years of “nation-building” in Afghanistan were jeopardized.  We’ve had troops on the ground in the Middle East for FAR too long.  Iraq wanted us out.  Afghanistan wants us out.  If we follow McCain’s suggestion to bomb Syria, or if we start an aerial campaign against Iran’s nuclear facilities, all hell breaks loose in the Middle East.   But I’ve come to believe there are a certain group of “hairy old white men” who are never happy unless America is bombing the hell out of someone.

 The Obama administration has done quite well in the foreign policy arena.  The Obama administration has a lot more information at their disposal, they know what’s happening behind the scenes.  They also know what a complete and utter disaster it would be for America to start another Middle East war.   Do us a favor, Repub “experts” in foreign policy.   Stop acting as if you could magically cure what ails the Middle East, and stick to blubbering about OTHER things you know nothing about, such as gas prices or contraception.

Posted in Hairy Old White Men, Politics

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Shut the Hell up, Newt

Posted on February 23, 2012 by Terry| 2 Comments
Newt Gingrich

George Bush was horrible, but I think he probably was just following his (screwed-up) heart. I actually don't think Romney is all that bad personally, but this race has warped him. Ron Paul? He's a wacko, but he's an honest, straight-shootin' wacko who says what he believes. But Newt Gingrich? He's the ONE GOP "leader" who I truly believe is just one PIG of a human being, be it in his personal life, or political life.

We’ve been in Afghanistan for 10, very long years.  It’s becoming more and more obvious that we’re no longer WANTED in Afghanistan, as attacks on Americans and other NATO troops by Afghani troops have been on the increase.   After 10 years of American troops on the ground, we are viewed more as occupiers, than as liberators from the Taliban.   Then comes the recent incident where Korans were (unintentionally) destroyed at a U.S. military base, and all hell breaks loose.

At this stage, it’s difficult to see what the end game might be in Afghanistan, or what we might have gained for the 10+ years of effort.  But whatever benefits we may have gotten from the Afghanistan war may go out the window in less than a week, given the pure outrage from Afghanis over the Koran incident.   President Obama RIGHTFULLY issued a formal apology to Hamid Karzai and the Afghani people.  It was the right move both from a practical standpoint (trying to calm the furor over the incident), and from a standpoint of showing respect to the Afghani people and their primary religion.  Not only the right thing to do, but a no-brainer.

But then along comes Newt Gingrich, NEVER one to pass up an opportunity to make a complete ass of himself.  He’s expressing “outrage” over Obama’s apology, saying that these are people “who do not deserve an apology from the President of the United States, period!!!”

Just the kind of pathetic pandering CRAP that appeals to the red-neck component of the Republican conservative base.  And just the kind of completely irresponsible statement that gives you a shiver up your spine, thinking a complete buffoon like Newt Gingrich actually has some SUPPORT in this country.  Can you imagine a foreign policy under Gingrich?  It would make George Bush’s utter disregard for international opinion look tame in comparison.   Gingrich and his immense ego seems to often extend into a VERY distorted “America First” view of the world, where the rest of the world is simply present to do our bidding.

Can you imagine the outrage from Newt, or American “Christians”, if the situation were reversed?  What if we had found that Afghanis were burning Bibles?   Don’t you think there’d be just a WEE bit of outrage?  Don’t you think some kind of apology would be warranted?  

You’re an egotistical, disgusting pig of a man, Newt….on SO many fronts.  Thanks for not letting me down on this issue Newt.   I saw this morning that Obama had issued a formal apology, and I immediately thought to myself “Which GOP candidate will be the first to bash Obama for apologizing to (GASP!) Muslims?”. 

Thanks Newt, for not letting me down!  I should have KNOWN you would have been the first GOP blowhard to make an issue of the Obama apology.

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Afghan Hate for Americans

Posted on January 20, 2012 by Terry| Leave a comment
Afghan Soldier

After 10-years in Afghanistan, we've long since reached the point where Afghan people, and the Afghan military we're trying to train, no longer view us as "liberators" from the Taliban. They no longer view us as helping them with "nation-building". After 10, LONG years of war and thousands of U.S. troops on the ground, we are viewed as Occupiers of their country. It's time to leave.

This story from the New York Times is sad, but you definitely can’t say it’s unexpected.  The story talks about the deep mistrust between Afghan soldiers, and their American “allies”, with violence between the two sides increasing.  It says there are “mounting numbers” of Westerners killed by Afghan forces.  It seems we’re now fighting not only the Taliban, but our “allied” Afghan forces that we’re trying to train.

We’ve been in Afghanistan for 10 years now.  We call it “nation building” as we try to simultaneously fight Taliban forces, train Afghan forces to do it on their own, and build critical physical and political infrastructure in the country.  After 10 years though, Afghans likely view it more as an “occupation” than as nation building.  As the story notes, it’s not just Afghan military forces with an increasing level of resentment at our presence, it’s the Afghan people. 

Yes, we’ve tried to help the Afghans.  We’ve done our best (??) to try to rebuild the nation and put them on a path to true independence, a path that provides them with a stable government, and a military that can deal with forces like the Taliban.  But after a 10-year presence in the country, things are still far from stable in Afghanistan.  There comes a point where you simply need to cut your losses, recognize the futility of the situation, and let Afghans take care of their own country.

It’s remarkable how little we learned from Russia’s ill-fated war in Afghanistan.  The Russians were there for almost 10 years as well.  They lost almost 15,000 people.  Over 500,000 Afghans were killed.  Russia too tried to train Afghan forces to deal with the mujahideen…a move which also didn’t work out well in the long run.  It took Gorbachev and a complete change in Russian foreign policy for them to pull out of Afghanistan and end the war…a war that people often refer to as the “Soviet’s Vietnam” for the futility of it all.

At this stage, the Afghans simply don’t WANT us there any more.  In Iraq, they simply didn’t WANT us there any more.  We’ve reached the stage in the war where we are now occupiers, not liberators or nation-builders.   It’s time to leave.

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McCain Wants “Long-term” troops in Iraq

Posted on January 8, 2012 by Terry| 2 Comments
Mccain and Iraq

I don't think John McCain is happy unless we're actively bombing someone.

Today on the news circuit, John McCain bashed Obama for ending the Iraq war and pulling American troops out.  According to McCain, Iraq is “unraveling”, and could eventually split into 3 states, all because Obama pulled troops out.  McCain goes on to say that we should establish “long-term troops” in Iraq.  As if being in Iraq for 9 years wasn’t long enough?

We simply can’t afford to have lasting, long-term ground troops in every country where we want to overthrow a regime and establish a more U.S. friendly regime.  Being at war in 2 different countries for nearly a decade has shown just how much of an economic toll it’s taken on our country.  From my standpoint…so freakin’ WHAT if Iraq eventually splits into 3 states??  You have Shia, Sunni, and Kurds who don’t seem to be able to get along unless you have a few hundred thousand troops on the ground for the long-term.  Is a 3-state end game in Iraq really all that bad of an outcome?  

I sympathize with the Iraqi people.   I sympathize with the Syrian people.  I sympathize with the Iranian people.  I wish there was a magic button we could push that could take care of despots and oppressive regimes.  I wish there was a magic button we could push that would establish stable, fair, democratic governments.  There obviously isn’t.  Even if our intentions are good, it’s simply impossible for the U.S. to unilaterally control the happenings in every country of the world.   We can’t keep military troops on a long-term basis in foreign countries, without paying a heavy price back home.  Mr. McCain, Americans are sick and tired of Iraq.  We are sick of Afghanistan.  The longer removed we are from 9-11, the more difficult it is to see what benefits we’re getting for 10 years, 6,500 American lives, and $1.5 trillion.  

One other point I simply don’t get…what the hell is it about people (ok, let’s be honest…not “people”, but “men”) like McCain and seemingly a whole host of folks on the right, where military might is such a huge component of what America is about?  Let’s say we would have taken $1.5 trillion over the last decade, and invested it in the people of Iraq and Afghanistan?   Or a FRACTION of that amount?   Where do we get more bang for the buck, and more long-term stability?  By bombing the hell out of a country, and then conducting years and years of “nation-building”?  Or handling it through diplomacy and foreign aid, to build better lives for these people?

Why is the first answer for some folks always a military operation?

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Obama’s Defense Vision – Sure to Scare Warmongering Repubs

Posted on January 6, 2012 by Terry| 1 Comment

We’ve been at war in Afghanistan for 10 years now.  We just wrapped up a war in Iraq that was nearly that long.  What have we gained?  Yes, Sadam Hussein and Osama Bin Laden are dead.  I will be the first to say that’s a good thing.  But…at what cost?  Back in March, a report stated that we’ve spent $1.3 trillion on those two wars.   We’ve lost well over 6,000 American lives in those wars.  Over 1,000 other “coalation” troops have also been lost (something Americans don’t really seem to care about, or acknowledge).

Today, President Obama announced his vision for the future of the military.  It moves us away from the incredibly expensive, long-term “nation-building” wars of Iraq and Afghanistan, towards a smaller military heavy on special-operations forces, cybersecurity, and drone observation and defense.  As the Post article reports, the strategy will (gasp!!) make us more reliant on coalition building rather than unilateral action.  Obama also plans to reduce our overseas footprint, removing troops from Europe and other places around the globe.

I’m SURE hawkish Repubs will make this a centerpiece of the 2012 election.  If there’s one thing Repubs are good at, it’s scaring people, regardless of whether those fears are baseless or not.  Up until this point, it’s been damned hard to bash Obama too much on foreign policy, given that he’s ended the Iraq war as he promised, authorized a daring raid to kill Bin Laden, and started to restore our very damaged international reputation after the Bush era.  However, this will likely give Repubs something to use against Obama and Democrats as they try to revive the old Repub favorite of calling Dems weak on defense.   Given the great jobs news that came out today (highest private sector hiring in 10 years, lower unemployment filings), Repubs might NEED another issue to focus on come November, if the economy keeps perking up.  God knows Repubs will also have defense contractors and their $$$$$$ chomping at the bit to help fund an anti-Obama campaign.

Obama will be well prepared to fight back on the issue though.  As the story notes, these defense “cuts” STILL will result in a Pentagon budget that rises every year, but “only” by about the rate of inflation.  It’s damned hard to criticize continued increases as being too draconian.  We spend more on the military than the rest of the world combined.  We have a huge budget deficit.  Obama is being the only adult in the room and is proposing a REAL solution to help the economy and the deficit, but still maintain strong defense capabilities.

Obama is showing leadership on the issue, just as a sitting president should be doing.  He could have easily waited until after the election to announce his defense vision, but he’s putting the country above politics in making this announcement.   Just wait in the coming days and weeks to see if Repubs respond in kind, or if we immediately start to hear the same old rhetoric about the need for a massive, bloated military.

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