U.S. commander in Afghanistan warns that full withdrawal will allow al-Qaeda to regroup

Washington Post ^ | March 12 | Ernesto Londoño

[FreedomPoster]

Churchill’s The Story of the Malakand Field Force should have been immediate required reading for anyone in the U.S. Government involved in reacting to 9/11. Big chunks of the State Dept., DoD, and the National Security Council, for starters.

[trebb]

I believe in beating your enemy’s head in with everything you’ve got ‘til he cries uncle, and if you’re not willing to do that, then don’t get involved in a long-term war.

Exactly - there's not much that can stand against our military if we "turn loose the dogs of war" and if we don't intend to take off the leash, we have no business firing a shot. I get the sense that the restraints that have been impose don our warriors is being used to adopt the philosophy that we can weaken the military machine to the point where its best efforts will only be able to give us the results that we get with all the restraining ROE - it might not be too long when we don't have the ability to win a real war even if we regain the will.