"War is not the answer, for only love can conquer hate." - Marvin Gaye
War is never an easy thing. It places tremendous burden on our troops, their families, and our entire nation. However, history has proven there are times when war is the uneasy answer in order to conquer hate. And it is hate of America that led to the tragic moment on September 11, 2001.
As President Obama noted during his war strategy address at West Point, we some times forget we were all united when we went into Afghanistan with the memory of 9/11 fresh in our minds.
As we profess our support or outrage at an escalation to the Afghan war, let us not forget two things. 1) We have no idea what the intelligence is telling our CIC regarding the risk of not stabilizing Afghanistan before we pull out. And 2) those are our brave men and women on the battlefield, who were forgotten for 7/12 years by their nation and CIC.
Andrew Sullivan publish portions of a letter from an U.S. soldier in Afghanistan and his feelings of President Obama's decision.
Email From Kandahar: "We're Going To Win This One"
I think for those of us who have the luxury of sideline quarterbacking from our safe living rooms, owe it to our troops to consider what they are feeling. After all, those who oppose escalation say they are doing in in the name of our troops.
An U.S. Soldier writes from Afghanistan:
Anyway, I'm now in Kandahar, working for Stan. That Stan.
I was anti-Iraq. Beginning to now, in the US and in Anbar with a gun in my hand. I was anti-Afghanistan ... the Bush/Rummy version, after about week six. So ... here's my tip:
We're going to win this one. We have a plan. I call it C2. COIN and cordwood.
That is the major difference between escalation under the Bush administration versus the Obama administration. With months of a deliberative process with civilian and military personnel, President Obama has a plan. And notice President Obama did not use the word victory. I suspect his intelligence tells him, that in order to end the war, he must first have a stabilized Afghanistan. Moreover, I don't think anyone would argue that an unstable Afghanistan can lead to an unstable nuclear Pakistan, which could have grave consequences for the U.S. and our middle-eastern allies.
The Soldier goes on to state:
We're trying to learn counter insurgency, while at the same time, we're stacking insurgent (the only accepted term at the moment) bodies like cordwood. They've gotten a little bit afraid, and are growing more so every day. The relatively fast 30k is going to relatively quickly change the picture, in noticeable way, in Helmand and Kandahar. We're booting the Canadians out of command of Kandahar City. Omar's town. We're putting a bright, smart, tough, funny Brit 2 star in charge of RC South, where the battle really matters.
Come on out. I'll show you around. But, please, avenge your Iraq mistakes by backing us when we need you, and other reasonably sane guys with platforms, to help out a little. Obama has taken some huge brave risks; but they're smart risks, and we're going to prove him right.
This U.S. soldier, and I suspect most, simply ask Americans not to take the mistaken Iraq war, a war of choice, out on the war of necessity. The war which was forgotten and terribly under resourced for 7 1/2 years. Our soldiers have hope in President Obama and his leadership style as Commander-in-chief. Even though we forgot them, our soldiers never forgot us. They never have forgotten why they were called up to duty in the first place.
Let us not forget where we were on 9/11.
I remember being terrified too death after I learned of what happened in New York as I sat for hours in Judiciary Square in Washington, D.C. Peeping through my sunroof, wondering if a plane was headed to downtown Washington, DC.
Frustrated because my cell phone wouldn't make an outgoing call so I could check on my aunt that worked at the Pentagon.
I remember finally getting home and watching newscast showing innocent Americans jumping from 30 stories high to escape. How those conditions must of been to feel forced to jump 30 stories to your death. I remember.
Support our troops as they fight the one war we didn't ask for. Its all they've asked for in 7 1/2 years for their sacrifice and it is the least we can do as a grateful nation.