Why are we escalating in Afghanistan?

[Questor]

Initially it made good sense to go into Afghanistan as a counterterrorism measure, bombing caves and otherwise putting pressure on allies of Al Quaeda. But today it simply makes no sense for us to be there. Why is the US escalating military presence in Afghanistan?

Iraq seems to have been pretty well managed by our military, but that was a different enemy too. We'll be out of Iraq soon enough, and on a schedule that makes sense to both US and Iraqi interests. However, there is no end in sight with the current, apparently useless, Afghan war. The notion that the Taliban can be defeated makes no sense at all.

[BBF]

I think Israel has been told by Russia, don't mess with Iran.

[mcwoodduck]

I think it is for two reasons.
1 is to finish and stop any further support the Taliban has as we were starting to withdraw.
2 is to show force in the area to Iran.  We are on both sides of them and easy to launch attacks into the western section of the country.
Similar moves were made at the end of WWII to stop out any Nazi uprising as well as keeping the Russians in Check, letting them know we have troops here to deal with you.

[powderman]

I know one big preacher in Lou who is PREDICTING, not prophesying, that both iran and russia will be hit at the same time by Israel. Possible? POWDERMAN. 

[Brett]

There is enough oil in Alaska and in the Gulf of Mexico (just to name a couple of places here in the US) to satisfy the "NWO" gang for the next several decades at far less cost both monetarily and in terms of human lives than that in the Mid East.  So I'm not buying the 'it's for the oil theory'.

Seems like the more things "change" the more they stay the same in politics.  Bush got all kinds of heat for Iraq and now here we go into Afghanistan.  So much for change.  The only change I see is what's left in my pocket after the Government has grabbed most of my hard earned pay.   

[BBF]

Messing with Russia has never been a succesful thing. Even Napoleon found that out.

[Dee]

Messing with Russia? Hmmmm. At the end of WWII, America could have walked thru Russia like a dose of salts thru a widow woman, and well we should have. Patton wanted to, and suggested the idea of getting it over with.
Alexander the Great was ran out of Afghanistan. England was ran out of Afghanistan, the SOVIET UNION imploded because of Afghanistan.
America is fooling themselves regarding Afghanistan. The terrain is IMPOSSIBLE, and the Afghan people are 10th century war lord types, and are REAL FIGHTERS, unlike most arabs whom are cowardly fanatics, whom resort to talking the "weak minded" into blowing themselves and others up. We will not however, win in Afghanistan. We would have done better to carpet bomb the training sights there, and let Iraq kill itself just as it has been doing since the days of Babylon.
When the last American boot leaves Iraq, it will go back to what it was. A THEOCRACY. Democracy will not be tolerated by Islam.

[dukkillr]

Messing with Russia? Hmmmm. At the end of WWII, America could have walked thru Russia like a dose of salts thru a widow woman, and well we should have. Patton wanted to, and suggested the idea of getting it over with.
Alexander the Great was ran out of Afghanistan. England was ran out of Afghanistan, the SOVIET UNION imploded because of Afghanistan.
America is fooling themselves regarding Afghanistan. The terrain is IMPOSSIBLE, and the Afghan people are 10th century war lord types, and are REAL FIGHTERS, unlike most arabs whom are cowardly fanatics, whom resort to taking the "weak minded" into blowing themselves and others up. We will not however, win in Afghanistan. We would have done better to carpet bomb the training sights there, and let Iraq kill itself just as it has been doing since the days of Babylon.
When the last American boot leaves Iraq, it will go back to what it was. A THEOCRACY. Democracy will not be tolerated by Islam.

I tend to agree with you on this with regard to Afghanistan, not so sure in Iraq.  Several predominately Islamic countries operate as something other than a straight theocracy. 

[BBF]

dukillr
Those countries face continious pressure from the more radical elements that are pushing religious laws on everybody.
Sort of like the radical left in our part of the world pushing their crap

[billy_56081]

Messing with Russia? Hmmmm. At the end of WWII, America could have walked thru Russia like a dose of salts thru a widow woman, and well we should have. Patton wanted to, and suggested the idea of getting it over with.
Alexander the Great was ran out of Afghanistan. England was ran out of Afghanistan, the SOVIET UNION imploded because of Afghanistan.
America is fooling themselves regarding Afghanistan. The terrain is IMPOSSIBLE, and the Afghan people are 10th century war lord types, and are REAL FIGHTERS, unlike most arabs whom are cowardly fanatics, whom resort to taking the "weak minded" into blowing themselves and others up. We will not however, win in Afghanistan. We would have done better to carpet bomb the training sights there, and let Iraq kill itself just as it has been doing since the days of Babylon.
When the last American boot leaves Iraq, it will go back to what it was. A THEOCRACY. Democracy will not be tolerated by Islam.

Welcome back DEE was about to send GB a PM on where you have been. I agree we would be better carpet bombing them back further thant they already are. And Patton was probably right on Russia, just as Mac Arther was right on Korea and china.

[Old Fart]

So much for change.  The only change I see is what's left in my pocket after the Government has grabbed most of my hard earned pay.   

Now that's "Change you can believe in!" 
Got the same problem in my pocket........

[Dee]

Not as a point to argue dukkillr, but what Islamic countries are democratic in any shape or form?

[billy_56081]

Turkey is at least somewhat of a Democracy.

[Dee]

There are several whom "claim democracy" but, there is a term "Islamic Democracy" which in definition CONTRIDICTS' itself.
Islamic Democracy is merely a "toned down" form of Islam, with a semblance of democratic procedures in government, but no real authority in said government.
Islamic Law will not tolerate a higher power than Allah, and the pseudo democratic government can, and IS, over-ridden at will, so there really is no such critter as a Democratic Islamic country. Only the fantasy.

[dukkillr]

Several of them are Monarchies or Constitutional Monarchies.  Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emerites come to mind.  Pakistan and Turkey both have secular elected governments with cyclical and varying degrees of independance from religious influences.  Azerbaijan, Burkina Faso, Gambia, Guinea, Mali, Senegal, Chad, Djibouti, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgystan, Northern Cyprus, Tajikstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina all have some form of officially secular government, elected government.  Several countries in Northern Africa have no functional government or one rules by the Military. 

If your meant to ask, "Which ones are not influenced by Islamic beliefs?" that would probably be none... Of course I'm not sure what that proves?  Every country in the world is influenced by the beliefs of their citizens?

I really don't want to pick a fight over this, but there are muslim countries in the world that you don't see every day on TV. 

[jimster]

Might be lot's of reasons why we are escalating in Afghanistan, but the truth is they can send 40K troops, or they can send 70K tropps, it won't matter.
No one has ever went there and "won" anything except dead solders.  Might as well turn it into a merc war and hire Afghan mercs to do the dirty work, cross the border into Pakistan and just kill people that way.  No sense in trying to do anything with a government, there is none.  Don't really like the idea of trying to "finish" something, or "win" something you can't finish or win at the cost of a solder, all for politics and show.  

There is a lot of things brewing out there in lot's of places, I don't feel all warm and fuzy with the current Congress and Obama in charge of any of this.

[torpedoman]

Alexander the great did not try to conquor this region he skirted it and hired the men there to fight for him.

[Dee]

Alexander the great did not try to conquor this region he skirted it and hired the men there to fight for him.

Assuming you were correct. Whom won the fight?

[slim rem 7]

 wait a min now ..i think dukkiller has a point..
 but concerning
 ww2 the goal was to eliminate the third riech...[sp]
   we helped russia because we were at war with germany an russia was also...
 most know of stalins self serving goals during that war...but in essence germany lost ww2 ,,because hitler was dumb enough to attack russia while fighting one of the U.S. allies on the opposite side of its country..
 when japan left the U.S. no choice,,it was exactly the excuse fdr was looking for an pretty much sealed germanys fate..although many many good U.S soldiers, died to bring hitlers final fall....
   although russia probably lost more people  than any country...stalin thier dictator is not to be equated with the millions of russians that suffered terribly.. the only one to kill more russians than hitler was stalin
himself..the epitomy of evil...imo
 ps. to any who thought russia was an communist form of gov...don t kid yourselves stalin was an dictator..
 this ,,not to endorse communism .. i despies it..