Neo-cons like you hate this, but Americans are free to try to change the policy of the government if they oppose it --even with regard to war. .
Sadly this seems to apply to Obama, now, too. Such a price we continue to pay for the stolen Bush-Gore election.
I can't decide whether it is refreshing or not to have such faith in Obama. Sure feel sorry for those killed and maimed until the magic date.
It appears that President Obama is essentially deferring to the generals on all this, and that the proposed withdrawal date is probably just a dry bone he is throwing to his left wing base. So it appears that Obama may have gotten the fundamental strategy right here. It also appears that President Obama did not really want to embrace this strategy, and that in his heart of hearts, he would have preferred to start withdrawing immediately. But he bucked up and did the right thing, even though that was hard for him to do. For that, I say: Well done, President Obama. Of course, President Obama's apparent suggestion that there is a hard date to begin withdrawing U.S. troops, regardless of the circumstances at the time, can only serve to embolden the Taliban and the other enemies of the U.S. in Afghanistan and provide them with fodder for their propaganda campaigns. If the locals in Afghanistan believe that we are going to cut and run, ultimately leaving the Taliban and their allies to rule the country, then they will very reasonably not want to offend these notoriously brutal people by cooperating with us. President Obama's weak delivery of this speech, along with his theme of imminent retreat, have served to help undermine the potential effectiveness of this strategy. As a result, he has done a great disservice to our men and women in uniform, and also those people in Afghanistan who would otherwise be committed to standing against these people, if the were confident they could trust us not to cut and run. President Obama's provision of a withdrawal date was obviously done as part of a partisan political calculation designed to appease his left wing base. However, while the left does not appear to have been impressed, the Taliban and their allies no doubt well be. This element of his presentation was very short-sited, and it may ultimately prove to be quite harmful to the national security of our country. For this highly counterproductive little stunt, President Obama deserves all the criticism he is receiving, and all that he will receive.
I feel bad for the soldiers and their families as well. However having a clear cut objective and exit strategy is refreshing.
i'm glad the right has finally taken an interest in Afghanistan, even if it took having a president they all hate
I've given up on Obama except as the lesser of two evils. I am surprised I am so depressed about it. I guess I fell a bit for the "audacity of hope" slogan. I have the discipline to vote for the lesser of two evils, (it only takes a few minutes) but I don't think history shows that will fire up the Democratic base. .
I swear, I honestly think some of you guys thought obama was going to be some kind of liberal revenge on the policies of bush. obama is not a liberal, he was never anti afghanistan, and its hilarious to hear BOTH sides make the claim of the opposite
So that's why you are posting articles critical about the war strategy from Der Spiegal.. Such as you are now doing by starting threads like "A date certain to cut and run" and calling this "a pathetic fighting strategy." Why do you hate America.
I agree. I've said this before but in a democracy a foreign war can only be maintained with the support of the populace. As even the people who not so long ago were lambasting those who criticized the previous Admin's war efforts as being unpatriotic and un-America are now finding out that yes there is a value in dissent.
The first part of your post contradicts this point that there is going to be a hard date to begin withdrawing US troops and as I highlighted near the beginning of this thread that the strategy will be dependent on conditions at the ground. Apparently the US Commander in Afghanistan disagrees with your assessment along with NATO leadership: http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/12/02/afghanistan.mcchrystal/index.html#cnnSTCText I don't have a link at the moment but on NPR they were interviewing troops and most liked what they heard. So you don't believe there is a hard withdrawl date yet you criticise Obama for it.
Perhaps almost as much as the disaster of invading Iraq to start with, the way the Bush administration tried to insulate our country from the fact we were at war in Iraq ticks me off more than anything else about his catastrophically bad presidency. Bush's Iraq policy was a 5-year continual campaign event as opposed to a war. His actions were criminal IMO, even though he cannot be prosecuted.
I only like a hard date if it is an immediate one. We don't need these dates. We are not USSR circa WWII. Either pull out all the troops or send what the generals ask for.
