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, September 11, 2014

War News for Thursday, September 11, 2014


Reported security incidents
#1: Militants blew up a railway track on Thursday morning in Balochistan' s Bolan district, officials told Dawn. A Levies official who requested anonymity said militants had planted explosive material close to the railway track in Bolan district’s Bala Nari area.

#2: At least 65 terrorists were killed and three hideouts destroyed during two separate airstrikes in North Waziristan Agency (NWA) on Wednesday. According to security officials, Pakistan Air Force (PAF) jets carried out precision strikes in Shawwal and Dattakhel areas after getting credible intelligence about the presence of militants.

#3: A mine targeted a police van in Kunduz city at 11:45 a.m. local time Thursday, leaving two persons including a police injured," police spokesman Sayed Sarwar Husaini told reporters.

#4: Moreover, three persons including a local official sustained injuries as a roadside bomb struck a civilian car in the southern Uruzgan province on Thursday.

#5: Eight armed Taliban were killed and six others wounded in clashes between Taliban and local police forces in Marwara district, Kunar province last night. General Abdul Habib Syeedkhail police chief of Kunar said BNA, the incident occurred in Bache region, Marwara district, while a group of armed Taliban attacked on local police post, in which eight armed Taliban lost their lives and six others wounded. According to Syeedkhail, after the incident, armed Taliban set on fire seven houses belonged to local police and also abducted 12 tribal elders from the site.

#6: Twenty rockets were launched by Pakistani forces from other side of Durand line on several parts of Kunar province last night.

#7: The Uruzgan Hajj and Religious Affairs Directorate Chief, Mohammadullah Abdali was injured following an explosion on Thursday morning. According to local government officials, the incident took place after an explosive device planted in the vehicle of Abdali went off while he was on his way towards his office.

Posted by whisker at 4:22 AM

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