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


Friday, November 14, 2014

War News for Fridayy, November 14, 2014


Reported security incidents
#1: Jet strikes killed at least 30 suspected militants and destroyed a number of insurgent hideouts in the North Waziristan tribal region. According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), foreign militants were among the 30 who were killed when jet fighters carried out airstrikes in North Waziristan's Dattakhel area. The area is off-limits to journalists, making it impossible to independently verify the exact numbers and identity the dead.

#2: A policeman was killed on Friday when armed men attacked a checkpost in Quetta's Hana area.
Police sources told Dawn that four armed motorcyclists resorted to indiscriminate firing at a police checkpost in the Nasarabad area of Hana.

#3: Unknown gunmen shot dead a prominent cleric in western Herat province of Afghanistan late on Thursday, local officials said.

Posted by whisker at 3:51 AM

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