montanadave
02-28-11, 12:51
On the subject of Afghanistan, I am deeply conflicted with respect to our strategic goals, open-ended commitment of our military forces, shifting tactics and mission statement, spiraling costs, and... well, the list goes on and on and there does not appear to be any end in sight. Frankly, I'm not sure anyone could readily identify the "end" if it were in plain sight.
I know there are members of this forum with first hand knowledge of the situation in Afghanistan and I am curious as to their take on a recently published book by Bing West, a retired USMC officer, former DOD official in the Reagan administration, author, and military analyst.
The book is entitled The Wrong War: Grit, Strategy, and the the Way Out of Afghanistan. Without going into too much detail, Mr. West's principle assertion is that the counterinsurgency tactics currently being utilized in Afghanistan have failed, creating a "culture of dependency" among Afghanis, who are largely content to take American aid and allow American soldiers to fight and die, but show little or no inclination to make similar sacrifices. According to West, the Afghanis, while seemingly opposed to putting the Taliban back in charge, are equally distrustful of both their own government and American forces. Without a clear cut winner, they are disinclined to fully commit to either side.
A review of the book, which also includes a mp3 audio interview with the author, is available online (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/27/books/review/Filkins-t.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1&ref=books). Another audio interview is available on the National Review website (http://radio.nationalreview.com/betweenthecovers/post/?q=NTMyNjc0ZGNlZDM4MmI4NTRkMmE2ZmM1Mjc0Y2ExNzA=).
The author also has a website (http://www.bingwest.com/) which includes excerpts from the book, videos of combat in Afghanistan, additional articles and reviews, etc.
I'm not looking to start a food fight and, as previously stated, my views on the war in Afghanistan are anything but clear. I'm simply interested to hear from folks who possess more intimate knowledge of the subject.
I know there are members of this forum with first hand knowledge of the situation in Afghanistan and I am curious as to their take on a recently published book by Bing West, a retired USMC officer, former DOD official in the Reagan administration, author, and military analyst.
The book is entitled The Wrong War: Grit, Strategy, and the the Way Out of Afghanistan. Without going into too much detail, Mr. West's principle assertion is that the counterinsurgency tactics currently being utilized in Afghanistan have failed, creating a "culture of dependency" among Afghanis, who are largely content to take American aid and allow American soldiers to fight and die, but show little or no inclination to make similar sacrifices. According to West, the Afghanis, while seemingly opposed to putting the Taliban back in charge, are equally distrustful of both their own government and American forces. Without a clear cut winner, they are disinclined to fully commit to either side.
A review of the book, which also includes a mp3 audio interview with the author, is available online (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/27/books/review/Filkins-t.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1&ref=books). Another audio interview is available on the National Review website (http://radio.nationalreview.com/betweenthecovers/post/?q=NTMyNjc0ZGNlZDM4MmI4NTRkMmE2ZmM1Mjc0Y2ExNzA=).
The author also has a website (http://www.bingwest.com/) which includes excerpts from the book, videos of combat in Afghanistan, additional articles and reviews, etc.
I'm not looking to start a food fight and, as previously stated, my views on the war in Afghanistan are anything but clear. I'm simply interested to hear from folks who possess more intimate knowledge of the subject.