#3. Define "US interests".
Embassies and US citizens.
How does one do drugs without hurting someone else? Money is spent on drugs instead of providing for his family. Getting high is not conducive to good parenting, so we are left with babysitters and their philosophy. Can anyone ensure that when they take drugs to get high that no one will be harmed so that makes it OK.?
How does one drink a beer with out hurting someone else? (BTW, I do not use drugs because I work some government contracts and get randomly drug tested.) Using and abusing are two totally different things. There are some drugs (Crack, Heroine, Meth) that are almost impossible to use without abusing. However, marijuana, cocaine, acid, and XTC are successfully used recreationally on a MASSIVE scale. The only people who benefit form their being illegal are the thugs.
We are in Afghanistan because they were harboring an enemy of the United States
I can not think of a single case where we went in some where with out just cause
I did not mention Afghanistan from the point of the US. Only Russia as an example of a successful guerrilla war. Going in and staying in are two different things. I think that almost everywhere we went in, it was just. However, history has shown that it is impossible to be a "benevolent occupying force" with a people who are a different race, religion, and language from you.
Psssst....we are winning big time in Iraq. If we will stay the course we will win.
Iraq has been one of the most overwhelming tactical victories in the history of war, but one of the biggest strategic debacles ever. We will never
win, because there is no common ground and no common enemy. The longer we stay in, the more their common peoples view of us will shift to the negative. The only exception I can think of is S. Korea, but there was a common enemy (N. Korea/China) there.