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


Tuesday, December 2, 2014

War News for Tuesdayy, November 2, 2014


A U.S. Air Force pilot was killed when an F-16 Fighting Falcon crashed in a non-combat-related incident November 30 at approximately 11 p.m. Eastern. The aircraft was returning to its base in the Middle East shortly after take-off. The crash did not occur in Iraq or Syria.


Reported security incidents
#1: An Afghan army officer says that six soldiers have been killed in the north-western province of Badghis after insurgents launched several attacks on guard posts. Gen. Douod Shah Wafa, the commander of the Afghan National Army in the province, says Taliban gunmen used machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades to attack the posts in Bala Murghab district early on Tuesday morning.

#2: In eastern Afghanistan, an official says an American drone killed five insurgents in Shirzad district in Nangahar province.

#3: According to Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the fighter jets of Pakistan Air Force (PAF) targeted militant hideouts near Miranshah, the headquarter of NWA, early today and killed 17 militants including some foreigners.

#4: Separately seven militants were killed injured in the gunfight between security forces and militants in Khyber Agency on Tuesday morning. ISPR said that the fighting erupted after about 50-60 militants ambushed a security forces check post in the Akkakhel area of Tirah Valley. The exchange of resulted in the killing of seven militants. Six other militants also sustained injuries in retaliatory action.

#5: In a mine explosion in Kandahar province a police was martyred and four others wounded yesterday. Samim Khepwalk Kandahar acting governor spokesman told BNA, the incident took place in Arghistan district, while police vehicle struck a roadside mine during their patrol.

Posted by whisker at 3:10 AM

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