Some believe that there are two types of war, wars that can be won, and wars that will be lost. My fear is that there, is indeed, a third type which is, wars that can only be fought. The clearest example of this is the war that has been raging between Israel and Palestine. Napoleon and the Russians showed that controlling Afghanistan has historically been a war that will be lost. Now we Americans are taking on that place and people again, and with our vastly superior resources and technology we have changed it into a war that can be won. My worry is that, in fact, we have only changed it into a war that can only be fought. Time will tell…

The President has decided to send more troops to Afghanistan. Like most Americans, I have been conflicted about what to do with Afghanistan. I have no doubt that our armed forces are doing good in that country. The question I have is, to what end? The Presidents speech didn’t help clarify that for me. Here are my concerns:

1. If your going to escalate the effort why not send the full 40K troops the generals requested? I don’t like doing war with a minimalist approach. That was Rumsfeld's doctrine and I don’t buy it.
2. If we are going to escalate, what is the mission? This was not clear from the speech. Hold off the Taliban. Till when? Prop up the corrupt government till they are stronger. With what assurances of civil rights (particularly for women)? To influence or stabilize or inspire Pakistan to fight it’s Al Qaeda and Taliban elements. That sounds elusive.
3. I am sick of hearing about exit plans. When it comes to war, either we have objectives and we will do whatever it takes to achieve them or we shouldn’t be at war. The only exit strategy being discussed should be victory or defeat.