The Wrong Way

I have written many times before in this space about my feelings with regards to American involvement in far flung military posts all around the world. In short, I’m against it. Perhaps no such far flung post has been more infuriating than Afghanistan. I understood the original reasoning for our adventure there 20 years ago, but ever since the original mission was completed it has been an epic misadventure. We followed Great Britain and the Soviet Union down the rat hole in the vain conceit that we could bring “democracy” to the ungovernable tribes who have violently resisted such notions for the past 4000 years.

So, when Donald Trump negotiated a total troop withdrawal, it was one of the few things he did as President that I agreed with. Neither of his two predecessors had the guts to do it. For that I give the man credit, like the broken clock that is right twice a day. 

But, there is a right way and a wrong way to do anything. What we have witnessed this past week is the wrong way. President Biden spent much of his last news conference assuring the American press corps that the upcoming withdrawal from Afghanistan would not be another Saigon, it would be orderly and that the Afghan army was more than capable of defending their country. His assurances turned out to be spectacularly wrong.

Now we learn that the President ignored the nearly unanimous advice of his intelligence services that the Afghan army was a disaster and that the Taliban would overrun Kabul. The heartbreaking scenes of people clinging to airplanes at the Kabul airport were actually worse than 1975 Saigon. This wasn’t grainy footage from half a mile away. These scenes of humiliation and defeat were in crystal clear HD. Up close and personal.

Victory has many fathers, but defeat is an orphan. Biden is getting hammered for his blame-shifting and stubborn refusal to admit that the debacle we have witnessed is partially his own fault. Why weren’t Americans and allied personnel withdrawn earlier? Why was so much valuable military equipment left to be gobbled up by insurgents? Whatever the reasons, its too late to do anything about it now. The disaster in money and human treasure that was Afghanistan for the last 20 years is over and our humiliation and defeat is absolute.

But there is a ton of blame to go around. Each of the last three Presidents deserves their fair share. This was a bipartisan debacle. Although it saddens me to see the scenes of chaos and the desperation of the many “helpers” who have been shamefully left to their fate, it doesn’t change the fact that we had no business sending men and women to die in Afghanistan for 20 years. Full stop. Could this withdrawal have been done with more intelligence, planning and care? Absolutely, and Joe Biden will pay the price for his bumbling and feckless stubbornness. But we shouldn’t forget that withdrawal IS the right decision. The United States of America cannot be the policeman of the world. It is not our job to bring democracy anywhere. We’ve got our own democracy that could use some work. If the Afghan army, after billions and billions worth of military equipment and training, isn’t willing to fight for their own country, why in hell should we?

What do you say to the mothers and fathers of the men and women who have given their lives in this effort? No words will suffice. So, forgive me if I don’t grieve for the Afghan people. The only people I’m grieving for are the brave soldiers who gave the ultimate sacrifice for such a fool hearty and tragic mission. The politicians who beat the drums for this war and continued to support it for twenty long years by their apathy and silence have an awful lot of blood on their hands. They include multiple presidents and politicians from both parties. It is a national disgrace.

If, as a result of this nightmare, the American people no longer will allow this type of nation-building misadventure, perhaps this will serve as a turning point. From now on the American military should only be used as a defensive force, and when it is deployed, it should be unleashed in all of its fury, not hamstrung by ignorant people who never served a day in the military. What our armed forces have been demonstrably proficient at over the 245 years of our history is killing our enemies and destroying their cities. Asking them to win the hearts and minds of hostile barbarian tribes of people who hate all westerners by building schools and libraries is NOT the job of fighting men and women. Our politicians need to stop asking them to do social work. Oh…and next time an American politician asks for a commitment of American soldiers and sailors in a foreign conflict, how about a declaration of war first?