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February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
Sept. 25, 2009
7 Tishrei 5770
From Mission Creep to Mission Gallop
By
Roger Simon
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
I love the smell of catnip in the morning.
Catnip is what President Barack Obama says attracts media attention: behavior that is "rude" or "outrageous" or "trying to evoke strong emotion" and create "conflict."
Today's catnip, however, is only some of those things. Does it evoke strong emotion? Yes. Will it create conflict? Yes.
But it is also something from which we cannot avert our eyes: Should the United States send more troops to Afghanistan, a place where mission creep has been replaced by mission gallop?
Our original mission in Afghanistan was to destroy those who had attacked us on Sept. 11, 2001, and deny them a future base of operations. We wanted to kill as many members of al-Qaida as we could — especially Osama bin Laden — and force the Taliban, which harbored al-Qaida in Afghanistan, from power.
So far, so good. But then — and this seems to be a habit of ours — our mission grew: We decided to "nation build" to try to create a new and stable democracy, one that provided equal rights to women and enjoyed popular support. We also decided that as part of our "counterinsurgency" mission, we had to improve roads, power plants, and bridges and schools, as well as make people feel safer in their villages by stationing U.S. troops near those villages. We also wanted a major shift in agricultural policy: We wanted Afghan farmers to stop growing opium poppies and grow pomegranates, instead. (That opium, the basic ingredient of heroin, is vastly more profitable to farmers than pomegranates is a conundrum we are still wrestling with.)
We have had some success in Afghanistan: We have not gotten Osama bin Laden, but al-Qaida has not been able to launch another attack against the United States.
But having destroyed the terrorists' ability to attack America, we have been sending a steady stream of Americans to the terrorists.
We have been sending them our soldiers. And more U.S. citizens have been killed in the fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan than were killed on Sept. 11.
So at what point do we leave? Or is there such a point?
In the beginning, we had one standard for judging our actions in Afghanistan: Is what we are doing making America safer?
Now, the standard is far more complex: Is what we are doing making Afghanistan better?
I don't have any objection to making Afghanistan better. But are we more committed to that goal than the Afghans are? And how many years and how many U.S. lives will it take to achieve that goal?
We don't know. We do know our military leaders want more troops.
Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told Congress last week that he had been speaking with Gen. Stanley McChrystal, commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, and "quite honestly, he found conditions on the ground tougher than he thought."
After eight years of fighting in Afghanistan, we are now finding things tougher than we thought? One can only wonder what other surprises await us as the years roll by.
On Monday, The Washington Post published a "confidential assessment" of the war by McChrystal in which he said he needs more troops "while Afghan security capacity matures."
Let me translate that for you: The Afghans are still somewhat unwilling to fight for their own country, to die for a weak and corrupt government in Kabul or to risk their lives to grow pomegranates and guarantee rights for women. (I don't mean to equate pomegranates and rights for women. I do mean to suggest that many men in Afghanistan are uninterested in either.) If we do not send more U.S. troops, McChrystal says, we risk "an outcome where defeating the insurgency is no longer possible."
So send more troops, or lose the whole shooting match. It is easy to see why the memo was leaked. The Pentagon does not want Obama to go wobbly on Afghanistan. It wants him to stay and fight. And stay and stay and stay.
"I don't have a deadline for withdrawal," Obama told David Gregory on "Meet the Press" Sunday, "but I'm certainly not somebody who believes in indefinite occupations of other countries."
But if Iraq was George W. Bush's war — and it certainly was — Afghanistan has now become Barack Obama's war. He wasn't the president who started it, but he can be the president who finishes it.
Or he can be the president who stays there indefinitely.
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© 2009, Creators Syndicate
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