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


Monday, July 30, 2018

Update for Monday, July 30, 2018

The U.S. has been talking with the Taliban. There are a few takes on this.

Afghan president Ghani has been trying to get the Taliban to the table, but they have insisted on talking with the U.S. first. Deutsche Well suggests that the U.S. overture threatens to undermine the Afghan government.

Apparently the outreach is a result of frustration by the U.S. president  over the seemingly endless war. However Afghan officials are worried that the U.S. could be too eager for a settlement at a time when the Taliban are in a strong military position, holding considerable rural territory.

Indeed, the U.S. has called for a retreat from remote areas, which has gained some support from within the Afghan government but also has engendered much controversy.

Jessica Purkiss and Abigail Fielding-Smith describe the descent into chaos in Nangarhar,  where civilian casualties have doubled since a year ago, many of them the result of government action.

An editorial in the Afghan Times describes the current state of despair over the endless war.

Civilians describe forced marriages and rape by IS, particularly in Darzab in Jawzjan province.






Posted by Cervantes at 10:46 AM

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