The present-day U.S. military qualifies by any measure as highly professional, much more so than its Cold War predecessor. Yet the purpose of today’s professionals is not to preserve peace but to fight unending wars in distant places. Intoxicated by a post-Cold War belief in its own omnipotence, the United States allowed itself to be drawn into a long series of armed conflicts, almost all of them yielding unintended consequences and imposing greater than anticipated costs. Since the end of the Cold War, U.S. forces have destroyed many targets and killed many people. Only rarely, however, have they succeeded in accomplishing their assigned political purposes. . . . [F]rom our present vantage point, it becomes apparent that the “Revolution of ‘89” did not initiate a new era of history. At most, the events of that year fostered various unhelpful illusions that impeded our capacity to recognize and respond to the forces of change that actually matter.

Andrew Bacevich


Thursday, November 28, 2013

War News for Thursday, November 28, 2013


CIA's most senior officer in Pakistan 'unmasked' by Imran Khan's party


Reported security incidents
#1: Six civilians were killed and some injured on Thursday when two bombs exploded in eastern Afghanistan, a local official said. "A bomb was placed in a car and second one was a roadside bomb, but it is not yet clear if they were remotely detonated," said Ahmad Zia Abdulzai, a spokesman for the governor of Nangarhar province.

#2: Three anti-government elements were killed and another wounded, during a series of clearance operation launched by the Afghan forces in southern province of Kandahar, an official said Thursday.

#3: The armed conflict between Taliban militants and police in Badakhshan Province with Faizabad as its capital 315 km northeast of Kabul have left eight Taliban fighters dead, Inspector General of Badakhshan's police, Fazaldin Ayar said Thursday. "Our operations against Taliban rebels in Jarm District began Monday and so far eight rebels have been killed and two others injured," Ayar told Xinhua. Two policemen have also sustained injuries during the operations, he admitted.

#4: Gun battle between Taliban militants and Afghan security forces left six militants and one civilian dead in the central Wardak province on Wednesday, spokesman for provincial administration Ataullah Khogyani said Thursday. "Units of security forces raided Taliban hideouts in parts of Wardak province last night, killing six Taliban rebels including their commander Mullah Nematullah," Khogyani told Xinhua. However, he added that the Taliban militants in reaction shot dead a guard of a school in Nurkh district last night.

Posted by whisker at 5:19 AM

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