Afghanistan Merely Signaled Change of Circumstances - No Change of Objectives

Submitted by M Tovey (United States), Sep 7, 2021 at 13:21

Of the many observances about the latest theater change in the more eastern territorial expanses of the Middle East (if Afghanistan can even be called part of the Middle East), one of the more historical aspects that appears to never be learned is the persistence and the perseverance of a peoples that are found there; they are hard to understand by the 'west.' Question: what did the erudite intelligentsia of the America political system of the time NOT LEARN from Viet Nam? There was an easy lesson to learn; yet they did not get the memo; neither did their successors in infamy.
Tactically, America was the sophisticated military presence; so why could they not make it stick?
Both reader Kepha and reader Prashant pose intriguing perspectives, not alone in their meditations of why things could have gotten so far out of hand; but a deeper analysis of why may seem to provide some evidence, of some which this observer finds in reviewing the scholarship that Dr. Pipes has provided, as well as that in which he has reviewed and reported on. Some of it agitates in forms of frustration in that there are conflicting approaches to the study and some tend to be dismissive of a reasoned rationale for the sake of controversy. In the final analysis, it tends to what is truth and who is trying to keep it diffused for ideology's sake.
Reader Kepha poses that Afghanistan was an unwinnable war - a very good presumption if one recalled the history of the British in the 19th century and the Soviets in the 20th century. America, however, lost sight of the objective, which should have remain tactical in getting the perpetrator(s) and not allowed to get into the self-deprecating strategies of defeating the ideology that struck the Twin Towers.
Reader Prashant moves the discussion towards why it does not make sense to engage Islamic sensibilities for the very reason demonstrated in the collapse of resolve (if it was ever there) that forced America to abandon Afghanistan pretty much as it did in abandoned Viet Nam. Loss of ideological resolve is impacted there as well. Studying some of Dr. Pipes' treatises in the liberalization of American academics ("Wreckage of Endowed Chairs" being the latest) makes for good reading here as well.
Embracing collegiate immersion of communistic socialist ideologies (from before the 1950's) amidst dealing with resurgent Islamic tendencies after the Russian revolution become points of interest for this observer when looking for when the resolve of America's founder during the "American" revolution seemed to prepare this nation for the interim place in history at the same time Israel is being prepared for its revival in 1948.
Think about the rationale of the protestors saying get out of View Nam versus the protestors proclaiming 'death to America;-Israel' in the Middle East and why Judeo-Christian values are at the basis of cause for both.
Like Reader Prashant declares; never sell arms to he enemy. Their objective does not change: why encourage that?

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