I disagree. We were not “similarly embroiled” in Vietnam. The similarity is more appropriate to Japan’s attack on us in 1941. What is similar is our not governing Afghanistan directly, not retiring the warlords early, not calling out Pakistan for it’s border-abetting of the Taliban......
As for no more dying, count those women viewing the world through a slit in their body suits, those girls denied education- as deaths of the soul. But that’s ok- we’re soooo tired....
@Jo Williams:
- what plans does the US have in afghanistan, really?
- [what were the plans in iraq?]
- how many [US] drones are being dropped in/on pakistan?
- as to women in burkas & girls denied education:
why does that matter so much in afghanistan
but not at all in saudi arabia, U.A.E. or katar?
the official double-standardry, it seems to me,
is outrageous to the point of being unbelievable.
afghanistan, by the way, thrives on drug sales while
most farmers would much prefer to plant ordinary crops.
who consumes the HUGE amounts of "stuff" supplied?
has life in the western world really become so terrible
that it seems bearable only if we're high? if so, why?
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When our country was similarly embroiled in Vietnam, and even during the period called "Vietnamization" we were told that we had to hold steady because of the bloodbath that would follow if we allowed a Communist victory. We did leave and our so called allies crumbled. People were executed and others were put in "re-education" camps. But paradoxically these Communists are now our allies against China, and you can eat KFC and drink Coke throughout the country.
The same types of things will be true in Afghanistan if we leave completely. The Taliban will sweep out the Kabul puppet regime. Women will be forced to wear hijab and girls will not be allowed to go to school. It may be a while before the Taliban allows KFC, but most importantly as in Vietnam today, people will no longer be dying.
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DEAD. KILLED. It seems that police, children and wedding party members are the majority murdered during war last month.
I wonder how many words for dead there are around the globe. How many words for barbarism. Well, it comes to mind that all languages will have a nuanced definition for what they think is barbaric, as will their leaders. A universal truism is that “dead is dead”.
I am seventy years old. It seems all of my life I have read or otherwise been apprised almost daily of who is fighting, and who died in the war theaters, or the at the hands of another government. We trick our psyches by using words for the dead who were not fighting-collateral.
How do people in all of the war torn countries of the world process dead? Do we all mourn the same. I no longer care what the political provocation is for dead. In the US there is opposition to dead, but it is cherrypicked. Right to life proponents-people who object to the death sentence-euthanasia objectors-anti pollution advocates...on and on, demand to end dead. But when it comes to war on foreign soil, with a majority of foreign deaths no one particularly responds. Dead American soldiers are celebrated, and flag covered coffins are meant for us to feel those soldiers are less dead. We try to rationalize all war death. But dead is dead.
Well, this old American woman will continue to read casualty lists, and obituaries, and ponder until I am dead why such publication was not Front Page news every day.
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A suicide attack carried out by a child. Taliban hiding in a home with children, who were among the dead after an attack.
This is who we are talking peace with. Oh- and another American soldier killed.
But we’re sending more troops to help Saudi Arabia. And evidently Pakistan got their IMF bailout (and the U.S. contribution to that pot of gold is....what?) It’s so good to know who our real allies are.
Thanks again, NYTimes.
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