American intervention in Afghanistan has come to a crossroads; one path leads to “further nation-building”, and the other is a path for the soldiers to make their way back home. Many will agree that we have served our duty in the Middle East, and have carried out our nation’s military mission to curb the threatening forces that have left a mark on our country a decade ago. A former special ops soldier who is friends with Kevin Drum, the author of this article for Mother Jones, texted him saying: “Are we leaving Afghanistan. No way we are that is awesome.
The facts have persuaded me that this war needs to come to an end. But the most persuasive arguments I have heard have come from my friends who have served there. Every single one described “nation-building” there to be about as insane as, well, a 51st state on the moon. All of them wanted to find and kill the men who attacked the US a decade ago—and go home. Since Obama took office, they have been granted their wish: almost all the al Qaeda leadership dead, and bin Laden’s bones being picked dry by fishes.”
The romantic vision of nation building in Afghanistan at this juncture isn’t practical; we have done enough damage and destruction there, and the major forces that threatened our nation are at their weakest. We have done our duty overseas and it is time to pull back and come home.
Title: Afghanistan: It’s time to go. Nation-Building vs. Al-Qaeda-Crushing in Afghanistan.
Author: Kevin Drum
Publication: Mother Jones, February 2nd, 2012
URL: http://motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2012/02/nation-building-vs-al-qaeda-crushing-afghanistan
Faculty Evaluator: Peter Phillips, PhD. Sonoma State University
Student Researcher: Colin O’Kane, Sonoma State University