Time's Up in Afghanistan; Republicans Oblivious

The continued strong support among Republican politicians and conservative opinion leaders for our now three foreign wars is their rapidly growing Achilles heel in the fight to regain the advantage over the socialistic, anti-anti-Islamist forces that have of late stormed over the domestic barricades.  Kill the Taliban -- fine and good; attempt to build a modern nation in a backward, pre-Medieval Muslim county -- doomed to failure.  Give us more time, more time, they hector and harangue, as if higher volume could convince sensible people that almost ten years of precious blood and treasure isn't time enough to train locals to protect their own people from the lethal radicals in their midst.  Adequate training is the least of their problems. 

After years of intense instruction and support by Americans and other Westerners, many of whom have died for the effort, when attacked by Islamist insurgents at Kabul's Intercontinental Hotel, "one of the capital’s most fortified buildings", machine-gun wielding Afghan police ran away (link).  They ran away.  If "moderate" Muslim Afghans by now will not defend themselves from their radical element, they won't for a long, long time, if ever.  We cannot give them the will and the spine to move Afghanistan to a better place.  Time as well for us to bolt the scene.

John M Greco