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« Polls
Should the U.S. send more troops to Afghanistan?
| Choice | Percent | Visual | Votes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yes | 46% | 198 | |
| No | 53% | 224 | |
| 422 total votes | |||
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Comments
We need to stop terrorism no matter where it takes us and Idon't care what country your from you shouldn't have to live in fear. We need to do whatever it takes to keep people free.
Yes, we sshould....for many reasons.
Our credibility as a military power is at stake. A feeble and inappropriate approach such as a reduced presence that is limited to surgical strikes will not produce the benefits of developing a counter-insurgency, as in Iraq. The US will be seen as fair weather warriors that skedaddle when things get challenging. When rallying coalitions in the future, allies would rightfully be wary of our fortitude.
This is the epicenter of Al-Qaeda and international terrorism. If we mean to prevent the future slaughter of Americans as occured 11 Sept 01, than where should we be? This was a recurrent theme in Obama's anti-Iraq campaign stump speech. A void in Afganistan would be filled by the Taliban and they would be seen as victors over yet another invader. The terrorists would be empowered by anything less than an allied victory.
Finally, I believe military action may be the only way to prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear power. For that mission to succeed, we would need some stability east of Iran as well as well-fortified bases from which to launch incursions into Iran.
I'm for a coalition and a NATO force to fight the war on terror. Terrorist are a threat to every country that wants to live free. Al Qaeda needs to be defeated but America should not have to go at it alone. Only a few months ago they were only sixty miles from the capitol of Pakistan, a country with nuclear weapons. That is unacceptable.
As far as the Taliban, that's a whole other story Al Qaeda are terrorist and the Taliban are Afganastan gangsters ( no worse than their current government ) up for rent to the highest bidder. I see it as two separate problems and personally I don't care about Afganastan. They are living in the twelfth century and that's the way they want it. We could spend every dime we have on that country and nothing there would change.
I agree with paulydel and Nonsocialist. Al Qaeda is the epicenter of international terrorism and terrorism must be defeated no matter where it takes us.
We cannot lose this. Although I hate seeing the violence pick up and our soldiers come home killed, I do believe a surge would work here, like it worked in Iraq.
Get the surge, win this war, bring our troops home!
Win it and come home or come home now. Let's stop screwing around.
Only is we intend to win; total and unconditional surrender. War! Total destruction and we don't need to use nukes to obtain our goal. No more politicians and/or corporations profiting from war while our troops are getting wounded and killed. I don't trust either the Dems or the GOP, DC or business. We have to demand they put America and our troops ahead of their greed ambition. Or else.
All the blood and treasure so far spent with little to show for it. As cambridge wrote, "America should not have to go at it alone."
ProMerkin,
For once, I agree with some of the things you say in your post! See what can happen when you veer from your usual senseless tirades of insults and made-up BS?
You closed your post with "Or else." "Or else" what? What will you do if they refuse to submit to your will? Say more nasty things about them on the local newspaper's message blog? Get all your friends together for a little tea party?
And another question: Who exactly would you like to see surrender unconditionally? Al Queda? The Taliban? These are loosely-knit, wide-spread organizations, with no single clear leader. If one group grants you your "unconditional surrender," there will simply be more stepping up to take their place.
Times have changed. This isn't WWII anymore. We aren't fighting a clearly-defined enemy. Rather, this is a battle to the death for the hearts and minds of of those our enemy is courting. That's the battle we need to win.
The Quail
Political leaders do not understand that there is a limit to the blood and treasure that Americans are willing to spend given the unwillingness of any foreign people to put their own political house in order. As in Vietnam, a major hindrance to American attempts to clearly defeat an enemy overmatched in firepower is the enemy's cunning or dedication. Remember, the Viet Cong did not wear uniforms making it difficult to seperate nuetral civilians from enemy combatants.
Tugboat....I agree with what you said about the unwillingness of a country your trying to help that is riddled with corruption.
Your comment on the uniform part of it is even worse in the Middle East. Those people actually do have uniforms. They all have a policeman uniform, a solders, a terrorist, a gangster, a banker and a candlestick maker. That part of the world is so corrupt and out of control that people are trying to survive day to day no matter what hat they have to ware that day. A person might be your friend today and your enemy tomorrow, depending on which way the wind blows.
We don't need to spend our treasure on "Nation Building" especially in a part of the world that rejects our way of life and everything America stands for. Our focus needs to be as the leader of a coalition of countries along with NATO in a world wide fight against terrorist orginizations and let countries like Afganastan determine their own future.
Quail, thank you for your kind words, lol. By the way, I'm not ProMerican, I'm ProAmerican.The Brits defeated the Thugs in India and they were similar to the Islamic Terrorists. We have special forces who use similar tactics and numerous nations are cracking down on the cells in their midst. The delima is fools who want to prosecute the CIA for "torturing" the terrorist who masterminded 911, believe America is the true evil in the world instead of the Islamic terrorists, the unconcerned citizens who are more interested in Dancing With The Stars and the Brown-Steelers ongoing wars and numerous socialist DC "representatives" who won't permit the military to be effective.
Ridicule the Tea Party Patriots but we confronted the opposition with truth and by being better informed then the and we still aren't being enslaved with their sinister national health insurance plan. Too bad all those socialist minions in DC aren't as dedicated to defeating the Islamic Terrorists as they are in dismantling America by selling out to super rich socialists who love living the capitalist lifestyle but believe it's not good enough for the rest i.e. George Soros, AFL-CIO, SEIU, etc.
It is essential to this country's national security that we defeat Al Queda and the Taliban. Unfortunately, I feel we need to insert more troops, and plan on being there for the better part of the next decade. I do not wish to see another attack on our own soil, and the only way to prevent that is to crush those radicals who detest the free world.
If General McChrystal feels we need more troops, we should send them. I would hate to see us scale back or redeploy without finishing the job, and leaving both Afhganistan and Iraq in the position to defend themselves and grow as countries. Freedom is contagious and could spread throughout the Middle East if we can win these wars!!
As for NATO & Alliance forces, if we want this done the right way, there is no better answer then relying on the elite members of our military. Other countries around the world to not have the determination or fortitude to get the job done the right way!!
This is a pivotal moment in the presidency of Barak Obama. He has the chance to shape the future of the Middle East. If he strays from his liberal detractors and commits to defeating these enemies, his legacy could have a positive reflection. If not, he will be showing the US and the world that DC politics is more important to him than the security and well-being of this country!! We need to show the world we are still the most lethal military superpower on this planet.
Thank you to all the service members for their sacrifice!!
thepotstirrer....changing the shape of the Middle East is exactly what we need NOT to do. If a new direction were worth it to the people of Afganastan or any other country they would be willing to fight for it.
The Taliban are Afganastan people that disagree with the current government on the direction of the country. It's up to them to work it out. We have never been successful in Nation Building and we never will be. Who are we to take sides in that dispute? The current government of Afganastan is one of the most corrupt in the world. Backing that government with US treasure and lives is far from a righteous fight.
The focus needs to be on Al Queda and any other terrorist organization that is a threat to the United States.
Yes we need more troops in my Opinion. And more bombs, I like bombs.
But I imagine obama will get back to you in or around a hundred days from now and then only if outed on 60 minutes.
Hey Cambridge,
Your right, let the Afhgans live in squalor. Demanding women wear sheets over their bodies and denying education to females is the right thing to do. We should just pick up and leave the Middle East.
Maybe we can fight those pesky Al Queda in our subway system!?!
Great call on the US being a poor nation builder. Looks like Tokyo turned out alright after we blew it back to the Stone Ages in WWII.
thepotstirrer....I wasn't aware of the United States setting up a corrupt puppet government in Japan after WW II. Though that is exactly the case in Afganastan. I don't deny that there are human rights violations in Afganastan but that government isn't any different than the Taliban.
If you want an example of what I said about everyone over there wearing whatever hat is called for at the moment, click on the link below and read how a Afghan policeman killed two American G.I.'s today.
http://www.comcast.net/articles/news-gen...
There are no bigger human rights violators than China and Saudi Arabia and we borrow money from one to give to the other. We can't be the worlds policeman and it's not up to us to change people that want to live in the twelfth century.
The only reason we are in Afganastan is because that's where Al Queda is hold up. If they were hiding in Greenland we would be hunting them down there. It has nothing to do with Afganastan, it's two different issues and it just happens to be where the terrorists are hiding.
We need to go in with a vengence and jsut do what we need to do and screw who ever don't like it. We waste to much time talking when we should be kicking ass.
Cambridge,
Who says we have to be the world's policeman? I am worried about the US of A. However, if we are causing collateral damage to the regions we are hunting down terrorists, it does not hurt to assist in building infrastructure or give assistance to the government. That could be seen as intelligent PR, so these nations think twice before harboring terrorists in the future.
I am for one thing and one thing only. Hunting down terrorists, then bringing our troops home safely. It would be a shame to leave a job unfinished, and have it bite us in the rear end down the road.
If the Russians and others couldent change the country what makes us think we can, they don't want to be civilized! Pull out, its not worth the lives of our soldiers.
thepotstirrer....."I am for one thing and one thing only. Hunting down terrorist, then bringing our troops home safely. It would be a shame to leave a job unfinished, and it bite us in the rear end down the road."
I agree with that statement 100%.
nick51...."If the Russians and others couldn't change the country what makes us think we can, they don't want to be civilized!"
I agree with that statement 100%.
The problem is people keep confusing Afganastan the country and it's internal political problems with the war on terror. They are two different things. I hate to say it but the war on terror wont end there. It will be ongoing. The US needs to lead a coalition of countries to eliminate these people anywhere the spring up. There's the world the way you want it to be and there's the world the way it is.
We won WW 2 in four years; and we fought a full scale war on two fronts. We've been in Afghanistan 8 years today. Either fight to win or get out like we did in Viet Nam. It's not right to risk brave American lives on anymore no win wars; Obama even said he's not interested in victory. At least he's honest about one thing.
We defeated Great Britain by using guerilla war tactic. Are we now the victim of the same un-conventional war tactics used against us? We're not very good at counter-insurgency. That was obvious in southeast Asia, Africa, Iran and Afghanistan. We'd better learn or else we will be involved in numerous protracted wars which are extremely expensive in lives, money and prestige. We can't afford that any longer because America is on the verge of bankrupy now.
We need to fight this one to WIN! If we suck enough of them into Afghanistan from Pakistan (or whatever hole they crawl from) and kill them there we show the Muslim terrorists (and the rest of the Muslim world) we mean business. Anything less is perceived by the Muslim world as a sign of weakness to be exploited. They are extremely patient.....and we must be too!