America is again (third time!--Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan) being massively deluded, by the military-arms merchants-media complex, into thinking a war--another war in Asia to occupy a country--is winnable. Russia with its 600,000 troops could not subdue Afghanistan (and neither could France vis-a-vis Indochina). There is no reason to believe the US could do the same.
Afghanistan is not Iraq; its geography is much more difficult, its people even more fragmented. Besides, it has never had a strong central government, thus is much harder to control. In the meantime, we do not have the 250,000 to 600,000 troops (using General Petreaus' own COIN manual) to send there. And, do we really want, if anyone cares to think about it, to empty our treasury for such a doubtful enterprise, one which will not bring us any measure of greater security?
In any case, it is clearly the wrong strategy; see this video: http://rethinkafghanistan.com/blog/?p=702
And, please, can we dispense with the canard about contemporary warfare (in Asia or elsewhere which always kills more civilians than combatants--combatants who are fighting a nationalistic war) having ANYTHING to do with our freedom and patriotism?
Perhaps an analysis of the domestic powers who want us to align our thinking to the Orwellian "war is peace"--that our very freedom is at stake--would be a better use of time. Who really gains?
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