Why not just leave them to their own devices? — baker
Of course, but notice that this was a game play that basically they couldn't avoid.I feel so much of US foreign policy at that time was driven by the desire to avenge 9/11. — Wayfarer
That's what Afghans love to say. But the truth is that Afghan tribalism and factionalism have always attracted foreign meddling. — Olivier5
Afghanistan’s embattled President Ashraf Ghani fled the country Sunday as the Taliban moved further into Kabul, officials said. His countrymen and foreigners alike raced for the exit, signaling the end of a 20-year Western experiment aimed at remaking Afghanistan.
A liberal democracy and a constitutional monarchy are not the same thing. — thewonder
Why not just leave them to their own devices? — baker
He was a good king, but he was a king and not the prime minister of a liberal democracy. That's the point that I've been trying to get across. — thewonder
"Mr. President, some Vietnamese veterans see echoes of their experience in this withdrawal in Afghanistan. Do you see any parallels between this withdrawal and what happened in Vietnam?"
"None whatsoever," Biden replied. "Zero. What you had is you had entire brigades breaking through the gates of our embassy — six, if I’m not mistaken. The Taliban is not the South — the North Vietnamese army. They’re not — they’re not remotely comparable in terms of capability. There’s going to be no circumstance where you see people being lifted off the roof of an embassy in the — of the United States from Afghanistan. It is not at all comparable."
What were they? Because the war continued on after OBL was killed. As I said earlier, it was and is the insane idea of "occupying a country, because it otherwise would possibly be a safe have for terrorists". That is the "operational directive", objective. And if you don't understand just how insane that idea is, then there you are.To be fair, what were the operational directives of Afghanistan. — Shawn
And if you purpose that because Saddam was overthrown that it was a huge success,then just listen to why a certain American decision maker said that going into Iraq was a bad idea (during Desert Storm).In another thread I said that Iraq was a victory, according to what was intended to be the outcome of overthrowing Saddam Hussein. — Shawn
As I said earlier, it was and is the insane idea of "occupying a country, because it otherwise would possibly be a safe have for terrorists". That is the "operational directive", objective. And if you don't understand just how insane that idea is, then there you are. — ssu
If you make a simple extrapolation of what happens to previous US allies in the Middle East, that will happen. First you lost Iraq in the 1950's. Then Iran in 1979. Now Afghanistan. And ties with Pakistan have been very cold for long. Remember that there was an alliance called CENTO.Interesting they didn't bomb Saudi Arabia, given that's where the hijackers were predominantly from. — Tom Storm
Get involved in philosophical discussions about knowledge, truth, language, consciousness, science, politics, religion, logic and mathematics, art, history, and lots more. No ads, no clutter, and very little agreement — just fascinating conversations.