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The Daily OrangeHistory holds the key to success in Afghanistan
By Andrew Swab
Posted: 10/18/09, 9:56 PM EST Section: Opinion
Afghanistan has been dubbed the "forgotten" war, but its history should not be forgotten. As the Obama administration begins to reassess the war in Afghanistan, now is the time to reflect on the history of Afghanistan to get a better understanding of our mission and the keys to success.
A deep debate is underway within the administration about the decision to increase the amount of troops in Afghanistan. There have been multiple reports that violence in Afghanistan is increasing. The West is losing support from the local people and the August presidential election in Afghanistan was rife with fraud. The point to take from this, however, is not that Afghanistan is a perpetual quagmire, but that improvements have been made. At least there has been an election for a president in a country previously renowned for being a host to terrorist and autocratic rulers.
Vice President Biden visited Afghanistan in mid-January 2008 when he was the vice president-elect. In Time magazine he stated, "There needs to be more resources to attend to in the situation of Afghanistan. It has not gotten better." Biden has become known as the cynic in the White House in terms of the war effort in Afghanistan. The New York Times reports that he has called for the United States to scale back the fight in Afghanistan and focus on a smaller scale of rooting out Al Qaeda throughout Afghanistan and Pakistan.
I think that it is convenient to look at the bleak or depressing developments in Afghanistan, not the hope and promise within that country. This is not from a military perspective, but as a student of history and diplomacy.
I recently watched a special documentary on PBS recorded about the war called, simply enough, "Afghanistan: The Forgotten War" that first aired in July 2008. It was about PBS Correspondent Bill Gentile's journey with a platoon of American marines in Afghanistan. A captain of the marines said to local Afghan elders, "I know that I myself and my marines are just another face after 30 years of different people coming through this area. But what I have told my marines is that the question we have to answer to you all is that how are we different."
A deep debate is underway within the administration about the decision to increase the amount of troops in Afghanistan. There have been multiple reports that violence in Afghanistan is increasing. The West is losing support from the local people and the August presidential election in Afghanistan was rife with fraud. The point to take from this, however, is not that Afghanistan is a perpetual quagmire, but that improvements have been made. At least there has been an election for a president in a country previously renowned for being a host to terrorist and autocratic rulers.
Vice President Biden visited Afghanistan in mid-January 2008 when he was the vice president-elect. In Time magazine he stated, "There needs to be more resources to attend to in the situation of Afghanistan. It has not gotten better." Biden has become known as the cynic in the White House in terms of the war effort in Afghanistan. The New York Times reports that he has called for the United States to scale back the fight in Afghanistan and focus on a smaller scale of rooting out Al Qaeda throughout Afghanistan and Pakistan.
I think that it is convenient to look at the bleak or depressing developments in Afghanistan, not the hope and promise within that country. This is not from a military perspective, but as a student of history and diplomacy.
I recently watched a special documentary on PBS recorded about the war called, simply enough, "Afghanistan: The Forgotten War" that first aired in July 2008. It was about PBS Correspondent Bill Gentile's journey with a platoon of American marines in Afghanistan. A captain of the marines said to local Afghan elders, "I know that I myself and my marines are just another face after 30 years of different people coming through this area. But what I have told my marines is that the question we have to answer to you all is that how are we different."
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Michael Sebring
posted 10/19/09 @ 10:11 AM EST
What opinion does this op-ed have? It is a bare historical framing of the War in Afghanistan. Should Obama approve McChrystal's call for 40k more troops? Should he execute VP Biden's plan of pulling out and fighting al-Qaeda only through drones and special forces?
Step your game up. (Continued…)
Mark P
posted 10/21/09 @ 8:12 AM EST
I found the 'historical framing' helpful. We've been over there so long now that many of us have forgotten--or don't care about-- the progress that has been made. (Continued…)
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