Posted on 01/30/2016 10:47:22 PM PST by Olog-hai
Fifteen years into the war that few Americans talk about any more, conditions in Afghanistan are getting worse, preventing the clean ending that President Barack Obama hoped to impose before leaving office. Violence is on the rise, the Taliban are staging new offensives, the Islamic State group is angling for a foothold and peace prospects are dim.
Afghanistan remains a danger zone. It's hobbled by a weak economy that's sapping public confidence in the new government. Afghan police and soldiers are struggling to hold together the country 13 months after the U.S.-led military coalition culled its numbers by 90 percent.
The bottom line: For a second time, Obama is rethinking his plan to drop U.S. troop levels from 9,800 to 5,500 before he leaves office in January 2017. ...
(Excerpt) Read more at hosted.ap.org ...
“...conditions in Afghanistan are getting worse, preventing the clean ending that President Barack Obama hoped to impose before leaving office.”
Why do bad things always happen to him?
um, let me see, oh yeah, he’s a moron, that’s why.
‘Rethink’ implies “thought,” the FIRST time.
Poor guy can’t count, gets all flustered after the 140’s.
seems EVERY damn thing this quota boy put his fingers on has turned to shit.
Worst president of my 62 years seem too easy on this punk ass poser.
Obama will not reduce troop strength. He is saving this loss for the next guy rather than have it show up in the historical record books in his loss column. The only question is when US troops leave whether the Taliban or Isis will take control. There has not been one positive outcome from any international conflict we have been involved in for the past 7 years.
We don't need more troops in Afghanistan, we need to change the insane and destructive rules of engagement Obama has imposed on our troops.
Obama has decreed that our troops in Afghanistan cannot fire on Taliban insurgents unless they are first shot at by the Taliban.
Our troops have to sit by and watch Taliban fighters fully armed with AK-47s, RPGs planting IEDs or setting up ambush positions and our troops are not allowed by the ROEs to engage or attack the Taliban until the Taliban makes the first move.
The Taliban is aware of this and they take full advantage of it.
This is the prime reason that our casual rates have doubled and even tripped under Obama despite our having won the war against the Taliban and having spent 6 years securing peace in the country under President Bush.
It does no good to add more troops when they are not allowed to fight the Taliban, much less take the initiative and win.
What we need is to allow our troops to take the initiative , act offensively instead of defensively and use a return to aggressive use of force to defeat the Taliban.
As of now, the Taliban knows they can re organize and gain strength from ISIS recruits moving in from Syria with no fear of attack from American forces while at the same time killing as many Americans as possible at the time and place of their choosing using low risk hit and run ambush tactics that allow them toe scape without being killed
More proof that you don’t end a war with a ceasefire. A ceasefire PROLONGS a war. The only to end a war is for one side to utterly and totally destroy the other.
How about drop it to zero and let them fester on their own?
Yup, best option is to get the hell out. Now!
What clean ending? Just pack up and come home, simple.
Like in Iraq?
Already tried in Iraq.
LBJ in spades.
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