Afghanistan: Another Potential Bush Failure

Bush was so eager to start his war in Iraq that the job in Afghanistan is not only left undone but Afghanistan is in danger of falling apart. If Bush is not careful, he could be known as the first American president to lose two wars. Unlike Iraq, Afghanistan is doable but it require resources and commitment, something that Bush has not been able to fully appreciate. Giving Rumsfeld free rein to do what he wants and leaving it at that is not the best policy.

Ashraf Ghani, a former finance minister and current president of Kabul University, seems to have a sober but optimistic assessment if the West can recommit itself to Afghanistan's future (original publication was in the Financial Times):

There is an emerging consensus, domestic and international, that Afghanistan is likely to slide into chaos. This misses the central point: there are assets in place that, if organised coherently, could re-establish momentum towards creating a stable, prosperous and democratic Afghanistan. If failure is not an option for the international community, attention must be focused on renewing Afghans’ trust in a bright future to make them active partners in the fight against violence and disorder.

The problem has arisen from failure to adapt to a changed context, loss of momentum in pursuing a credible programme of development and mis-calibrated use of violence. In contrast to 2001, when there was a global consensus on the imperative of stability in Afghanistan, the regional, international and domestic environments have changed. The regional consensus has either frayed or broken, with Pakistan and Afghanistan trading accusations rather than forging the partnership that their mutual interests demand, and Russia, Iran and India sending mixed signals and taking increasingly unilateral approaches. While international consensus on state-building has been forged, the innovative mechanisms of implementation, co-ordination and monitoring required are not yet in place. Meanwhile, the public mood in troop-contributing nations is becoming sceptical of the wisdom of engagement.

it seems to me that we have paid a terrible price for Bush's quagmire in Iraq. Issue after issue is being neglected because our military is bogged as a direct result of policies that originated in the White House, Cheney's office and the Pentagon. lf we are to move forward, Bush has to stop playing politics; staying the course is not the answer.

I don't like linking and posting articles on American deaths but we as a nation need to start insisting on some realism in our policies. Here is a CNN story that several paragraphs down reports on five American deaths in Iraq:

The U.S. military Thursday reported the deaths of five troops in recent attacks near Baghdad and in Anbar province.

Four of those were Marines killed in two attacks Tuesday in Anbar. Three died when their vehicle hit a roadside bomb; the fourth died "after being attacked while conducting security operations," a military news release said.

The military also reported a U.S. soldier died Wednesday when his vehicle struck a roadside bomb south of the Iraqi capital.

And here's a story from the Waterloo/Cedar Rapid Courier that carries an AP story on four American death in Afghanistan:

Four U.S. soldiers were killed and another wounded while fighting militants in eastern Afghanistan, the military said Thursday.

The soldiers were killed in combat Wednesday in eastern Nuristan province while conducting security operations to block the movement of enemy forces, a coalition statement said.

One soldier was wounded in the fighting in the province's Kamdesh district and evacuated for treatment. He is in stable condition, the military said.

Bush's incompetence is limiting America's ability to manuever or respond to the growing problems in the world, problems that are having an impact on our country. Bush must either institute a draft or start drawing down in Iraq or Afghanistan. In Iraq, our presence has become the main problem and it's time to draw down. In Afghanistan, we have a true coalition of partners but they need leadership and Afghanistan needs resources and not the back burner treatment. We drove al Qaeda out of Afghanistan and the Taliban out of power. It's time to finish the job (but without Rumsfeld) and stabilize Afghanistan.