He’s a good guy, and I like him very much. But he’s wrong in this. A perpetual game of whack a mole in deep central Asia is not keeping America safe. At this point we are fighting terrorists who weren’t born when 9/11 hit.
When you have a hammer, everything looks like a nail. So of course a SEAL would think we need to be there forever.
At this point it is a hollow tree full of bees and we keep whacking it with a board, swatting the angry bees, claiming we are protecting our house. We are now creating more terrorists.
The answer is to hermetically seal islamic nations off from America. The 9/11 guys all came here on Visas. The Saudis funded them.
This war is a diversion from what they are doing, not/doing, here at home. We are 6 trillion in the hole from it and no safer.
That is a truly damning comment about a commissioned officer. Being an officer is serious calling akin to being a clergyman. It is deeply serious not only because one may have to die as a result of their calling but that the purpose of the arms bearing society is protection of the larger society, not just mindless belligerence. That may be a good thing in an EM or even an NCO up to SSGT. The soldier serves the statesman but both serve the nation in what should be a deeply serious and profound manner. As you so well point out we are fighting men in Afghanistan that were not born when 9/11 happened. That is the most complete statement of failure that could be made and should cause any military professional pause at what must be a failed strategy he or she is being asked to risk life and limb to execute.