We need real change in Afghanistan

President Obama has made a decision regarding the future of our country’s involvement in Afghanistan. Drum roll, please. We’ve all been waiting on the edge of our seats.

Last week the president officially announced that he would be deploying an additional 30,000 troops to Afghanistan, with a planned withdrawal of allied forces in July 2011.

Sigh. (That’s me, exasperated.)

As you’re aware, I am completely opposed to sending more troops to Afghanistan. This particular strategy, which Obama and his military counsel have devised, will cost taxpayers an additional $30 billion to $35 billion a year.

When are we going to stop putting so much of our nation’s money and resources into a war we will not win? It’s a waste of taxpayer money and, more important, human life.

Maybe the president realized that his health care reform bill wouldn’t add enough to the deficit.

People often ask me why I was in favor of invading Iraq but am now vehemently opposed to a surge in Afghanistan. It wasn’t just the addition of troops that made our war in Iraq successful. The rules of engagement in Afghanistan are dramatically different than in Iraq. The country’s innumerable valleys and caves and its mountainous terrain make it difficult, if not impossible, to fight Al Qaeda on its own territory.

Perhaps the worst part of Obama’s plan is setting a timeline for our military forces to leave Afghanistan. The president is setting himself up for yet another tough decision. What happens 18 months from now when the objectives of the war are incomplete? Sen. John McCain, among others, while agreeing with the surge, is vocal in his opposition to publicly releasing a timeline, saying it will send the wrong message to the enemy. Do we really want a calendar to determine our success?
To say that the Afghani people appreciate our aid in their county is something of an overstatement. They see us as invaders and occupiers. I predict Al Qaeda will simply wait until our troops leave and security in Afghanistan lapses. They will sit tight for 18 months and then come out of hiding, guns blazing. There is no such thing as moderate Al Qaeda. This is insanity!