'Still a long way to go' for U.S. operation in Marja, Afghanistan

Washington Post ^ | June 10th, 2010 | Rajiv Chandrasekaran

[Cardhu]

MARJA, AFGHANISTAN -- Residents of this onetime Taliban sanctuary see signs that the insurgents have regained momentum in recent weeks, despite early claims of success by U.S. Marines. The longer-than-expected effort to secure Marja is prompting alarm among top American commanders that they will not be able to change the course of the war in the time President Obama has given them.

Firefights between insurgents and security forces occur daily, resulting in more Marine fatalities and casualties over the past month than in the first month of the operation, which began in mid-February.

Marines and Afghan troops have made headway in this farming community, but every step forward, it seems, has been matched by at least a half-step backward.

Two-thirds of the stalls in Marja's main bazaar have reopened, but the only baker fled the area a week ago after insurgents kidnapped his son in retaliation for selling to foreign troops and the police.

Men have begun to allow their burqa-clad wives to venture out of their homes, but an effort by female Marines to gather local women for a meeting last week drew not a single participant.

The Afghan government has assigned representatives to help deliver basic services to the

[Cardhu]

Before the operation, McChrystal pledged to deliver a "government in a box" that would provide basic services to the population with the hope of winning its allegiance. The box has turned out to be largely empty. Marja's chief official, Haji Zahir, who spent four years in a German prison for attempting to murder his stepson, is regarded by some of the civilian reconstruction advisers here as an ineffective manager with a proclivity for lengthy siestas and an unwillingness to engage in the nitty-gritty of governance...

At a session in Zahir's Marine-issued tent, which has been decorated with plush brown sofas and red carpets, Hatton urged him to work with tribal elders to nominate men to serve in the police.

Zahir's response was less than noncommittal. "They're never helpful to me," he said of the police. "They've never done anything good for me."

[bill1952]

We have passes the 1,000 dead milestone mark in this country with not one peep from the communist news rags.

When Bush was president it was trumpeted from the rafters...

[Travis McGee]

Does anybody believe we can “reform” Afghanistan?

[cephalopod1]

Quote:
Men have begun to allow their burqa-clad wives to venture out of their homes, but an effort by female Marines to gather local women for a meeting last week drew not a single participant.
end quote.

The rule of fear, informal authority is in evidence.
Not the rule of law— nothing formal.
This society has decided to look back. I don’t know what they’ll find in looking back. But their problems are not ours. We should
1. get the hell out and
2. forbid all immigration from the Muslim world.
3. forbid all technology transfer to the Muslim world.
We should re-assess every international commitment we have made in terms of the deficit and the current state of American society.
It’s time we acted in our interests instead of THEIRS.

[Roamin53]

“When Bush was president it was trumpeted from the rafters...”

Funny, I thought it was unusually quiet about this. The media is so in the bag with the Obama gang.

[ScottinVA]

I hate to say this, and I wouldn’t have in the 1980s, but in retrospect we would’ve saved ourselves a LOT of trouble by leaving Afghanistan in the hands of the Soviets, and let THEM face the sh*t. One word IMHO describes Afghanistan:

Hopeless.

[kevslisababy]

And my marine son is headed there in December, I’m scared sh!tless for him.

[Rappini]

All we can do at this point is pray for him. And let him know that we thank him for his service.

[ScottinVA]

And my marine son is headed there in December, I’m scared sh!tless for him.

My prayers for his safety, mission accomplishment and safe return.