You VC!!

I'm sitting here listening to the pundits discuss whether President Obama's firing of one general, and immediate hire of another, was brilliant or not. Well, I suppose it had to be done. I get it. This General Petreus sounds competent. Ok, I can see it all. But, something else occurred to me this evening as I daydreamed about AJ beating my AK for a hundred dollars about 20 minutes ago.

See, I listened for about 20 minutes to a joint news conference Obama and the russian president were having. Obama was asked about the war in Afghanistan, and he gave our strategy of getting things calmed down, making the gov't we support able to fight for itself, and hopefully begin pulling troops out about a year from now. He also said he and his team would be reviewing things as this year goes on to determine the probability of some troops being sent home.

The President metioned Pakistan needed to get in the game and start hunting some of the bad guys inside of their country. That makes perfect sense. But, what if they don't? Are we going into their country, in force, to try and pin the enemy down? Are we going to attack Pakistan? These are big problem questions, not little problems at all.

This all sounds like another war, in my lifetime, that I have actually read quite a bit about. Viet Nam was nearly the same. The Ho Chi Min trail wound down from North Vietnam and into Laos and Cambodia before it came back into South Viet Nam. It was the supply route for the insurgents and viet cong.

Routinely, the Viet Cong and NVA (North Vietnamese Army) would resupply, building up strength in Cambodia and Laos and then launch attacks in South Viet Nam. Once The US arrived on scene and in force we would naturally triumph in battle. Th enemy was no match, but the enemy would slip back across the border to resupply and do it all again.

Does this sound familiar? Afghanistan, Pakistan, insurgents, slipping across the border? Huh, no, are you living on the moon?

Ok, let's step back a second. Let's try to imagine how our current strategy for Afghanistan might play out, assuming each step actually goes as planned.

-Keep pressure on the enemy reducing their ability to cause trouble
-Pakistan aids us and attacks enemy camps inside of Pakistan
-Arm and train the current Afghan government so they can defend themselves
-Begin to pull our troops out as fewer attacks take place.
-Continue to support the Afghan people and government, always strengthening their armed forces.
-Hope the current Afghan government can hang on.
-When the current Afghan government loses power to the taliban, impose economic sanctions.
-When those don't work, go back in???

It is, to say the least, a tall order. I'm afraid this will end up being another "win every battle, and lose the damn war" scenario. Unless we occupy Pakistan I cannot envision the enemies arrayed against us stopping their efforts to make us leave. They will not give up and we cannot kill them all.

How much money are we spending on this war? I'm afraid to google it. I did though and the total money appropriated for both Iraq and Afghanistan is 160 B for 2011. That is a lot of creased stripper dollar bills.

So, we're also going to pay for Afghanistan to have a good, well equipped, highly trained military. How much is that going to cost? I don't want to know. I think there may still be hope. I think there is only one course of logic.

We have to pull out. It's not defeat. The Taliban may take power again, well, they probably will. They will probably aide Al Queda in trying to figure out how to destroy us. They may even launch another terrorist attack inside of US soil. But you know what? That may very well happen anyway.

Homeland Security is important. Troops on our own borders is important too. American families spending holidays and birthdays together is possibly the most important.

I still want us to kick ass though, when the time is needed. I just think there are better, certainly less expensive, and certainly more world friendly ways to do it. What I'm talking about has been made to almost sound taboo in the art of 21st century warfare. Covert operations.

Have men on the ground in all of the countries in the middle east. Clendestine operations. Seek out the training centers. Seek out the enemy. Then, bomb the shit out of them.

I know there are going to be civilian casualties. That is something that no one ever desires, but it's called collateral damage for a reason. We do not need to get anyone's permission, just get the planes airborne and bomb the enemy hard and fast.

If bombing them won't work then put small teams on the ground to take out those tough to clean stains. It's time to possibly be a little sloppier. We won't be able to save the true innocents, the people of Afghanistan, because they will still be living in turmoil ruled by the Taliban. Can you imagine being female and living under that rule?

I cannot be optimistic enough to picture that region of the world being safe and secure for decades to come, and that is whether our military remains in that country or not. Therefore, bring the troops home. Train them hard. Resupply OUR forces. Prepare for the next war, because it may be a doosie. This is turning into Viet Nam and I wish it to end.

Codsey out.