No Way Out of Afghan War Without Grim Choices

The peace movement assumes the fighting in Afghanistan will end if the US announces that the US troops would pull US troops out in a speedy fashion, and the US progressive agenda would be back on track again.

When the Russians left not only were Western oriented women forced into burkas, but the bloodbath from rebels fighting among themselves increased when compared to the killings during the war with the USSR. Today there are two generations of men whose only job they knew was soldier or a related job like spy and police officer. The US is unintentionally supplying both sides of the war. Individual Taliban soldiers are hired to join the government’s side. Imagine if drug dealers in this country were told to quit and if they did they would get a new job as police officers.

The same day that Obama announced a speedy withdraw, a woman in Kabul would cry about having to wear the burka again, and all but kidnap the western reporter to take her with him when he leaves and things will go downhill from there. It doesn’t have to be that way, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar a powerful Taliban supporting warlord goon announced plans for a power-sharing government as the US leaves and Afghan President Karzai personally began negotiating with his representative. Even before Hekmatyar’s representative met Karzai the US media noticed Karzai was corrupt and had heaped lavish praise on Iran. No one noticing he had also lavishly praised the Chinese government while begging for peace help from China, and he begged Saudi Arabia to be a mediator between him and the Taliban. The Taliban’s usual response was they don’t negotiate with traitors.

Dennis Kucinich and Ron Paul could have a real stop funding the war bill with a preamble that this should be done even if those women in Kabul who don’t want to wear burkas are whipped instead, and if all the unemployed fighters try to find new, they get no where. But instead would lobby "We know there would be different problems but the US can’t afford a bankrupting war", he might listen more, and end up with less of a backlash if the carnage gets worse.

No one seems to note that far less people are dying now in the Afghan War including civilians then in most wars, Mullah Omar has a strict Taliban code of ethics, google it with the NY Times for the most detail, President Karzai doesn’t have secret prisons like in Iraq but keeps complaining of too many civilian deaths and General McChrystal keeps talking about wining the hearts and the minds. Any one of them could be replaced by a hot head, and make things far worse. So its time to get out, but this will only happen if those that lobby for US withdrawal will admit that US getting out will not mean the war is over.

By the way the US has a knack for spending like we are in a real war to end all wars, even though people are dying like it was a skirmish. Since the euro is also weak if we don’t get out we will end up worrying about starvation not war.

For more details, please google the three originals, “No Way Out of Afghan War, (unless the US faces up to grim choices)”
http://www.phillyimc.org/en/no-way-out-afghan-war-without-grim-choices
“Peacemaker Afghan President Karzai needs help from the Peace Community”

By Richard Kane, RichardKanePA.blogspot.com