A Soliloquy of the War in Afghanistan

Why is the US in Afghanistan? Matthew Hoh, serving as a senior civilian officer in Zabul, Afghanistan, resigned last month in protest of the war. Former US Marine Hoh stated in his resignation letter that he had “lost understanding of and confidence in the strategic purposes” of US presence in Afghanistan. We have all heard that a record number of American soldiers have died this month, that General McChrystal wants more troops and that Obama is going to give them to him. But many Americans are confused as to what the long term goal is. Why is Afghanistan so important?

The US military states that they are using minimal force in the region. In fact, the military itself has said that the use of force is mostly counterproductive in the country. It might be difficult for Americans to believe this change in tactics if they are not privy to what is really going on there. Even some anti-war advocates say that the US and allied troops need to stay longer to protect Afghani women. Many humanitarian groups will not commit if they are not first guaranteed security. How can we reduce the number of civilian casualties if we do stay?

If even the military claims that the problems in Afghanistan have no military solution, why is it that we keep sending troops? Why don’t we have more non uniformed experts like city planners, agronomists, diplomats ready to go? Why are we as a nation so dependent on our military?

The Obama administration is trying to sell the American public on their solution without first clearly explaining the problem. Tell us why we are still in Afghanistan. Is chaos there the gateway to violent extremists destabilizing Pakistan - with its nuclear program? Does the complicated situation in Afghanistan - which is at least as much a humanitarian crisis as a military problem - represent what all of our future conflicts will be? How does our involvement there relate to the attacks on 9/11 – are we at risk if we reduce our commitment there? What would Afghanistan look like if we withdrew the military? What is our non military commitment?

Perhaps if we were given answers to these questions we could better understand the war in Afghanistan and why experts from differing political backgrounds are saying it is too soon to leave.