Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Obama's Afghanistan speech: And we waited over three months for this?

General Stanley McChrystal, the commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan, requested some 44,000 troops in an August 31st document that was subsequently leaked. Obama finally gave McChrystal an answer on December 2. 93 days. This "delay" as Obama called it, "allowed me to ask the hard questions, and to explore all the different options, along with my national security team, our military and civilian leadership in Afghanistan, and our key partners." What McChrystal got after all that time was a half-hearted, contradictory mess that is bound to fail. Included is an 18 month timeline during which the first six to eight months would be needed just to deploy the 30,000 troops. What, that gives our forces less than 12 months to wrap it up? To properly train an Afghan army, many of which are illiterate? What kind of strategy is that?

Why the micromanaging of 30,000 down from 44,000, which was McChrystal's minimum number requested? To prove the point that Obama is in charge here? Obama implied that NATO troops would make up the difference, but of course, no specifics on that.
The whole idea of even giving a timeline presumes that the Taliban cannot think, plan, nor add and subtract. What's to prevent the enemy to go into hibernation, taking a vacation or moving back in with mom for 18 months and then regrouping? Not a damn thing.

Look, Obama is a pacifist and like it or not (not) he is the commander in chief. The two things do not mix well together. Without being 100% behind the war in Afghanistan, a successful outcome is greatly diminished. As this is where we are, I say we must get out now. Having a neophyte, anti-war leftist running the show cannot end well. Our men and women in uniform should not be put in the line of fire with a President that is afraid to make a move for fear of upsetting his leftist base. Their commander in chief is compromised; his allegiance is elsewhere.

We should not loose one more brave soldier because our electorate was so shortsighted and so easily duped to vote into office a man such as this in a time of war. British and the Soviet Union's past efforts in Afghanistan both failed; with Obama in charge, so will the United States.