20 December 2010

Afghanistan War Review Conclusions Misguided & VIDEO: Police Arrest 131 Antiwar Protesters In Front Of White House 16DEZ10

REP BARBARA LEE, D CA, 9 YEARS AGO THE LONE VOICE OF SANITY IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, REFLECTING ON THE DAMAGE DONE TO OUR NATION.....from HuffPost
Nine years ago on September 14, 2001, I placed the lone vote against the "Authorization for Use of Military Force" -- an authorization that I knew would provide a blank check to wage war anywhere, at any time, and for any length.

It is deeply disappointing that after nine years of war, thousands of American casualties, and the inability of the Afghan government to rise above its corruption and incompetence, we are no closer to ending our role in this conflict.
Just as I predicted it would, this report tells us almost nothing new, assuring us that if we just continue to do what we're doing, everything will work out in the end. There are fewer and fewer Americans who believe that, and the time has come to reorient United States foreign policy to meet the threat of terrorism in a more effective and sustainable manner.

I take no pleasure in having my fears about this war vindicated. But from the time I was the only member of Congress to vote against the "Authorization for the Use of Military Force" in 2001, all the way up to today, we have heard again and again that things will improve and the war can come to an end soon. Instead, we find ourselves in a tragic Afghan version of Groundhog Day, in which brave American service-members give life and limb in a conflict without end.
At home, individuals and families across the nation are struggling to gain meaningful employment, put food on the table, and ensure a life of opportunity for future generations.

Meanwhile, critical human needs as well as much-needed investments in our nation's infrastructure, schools, and domestic clean energy production have been pushed aside while we consider massive tax cuts to benefit the wealthiest few.

We should not and can not afford to extend a policy of open-ended war in Afghanistan that is costing us well over $100 billion per year and ultimately making our nation less safe.

The president's commitment to the start of a U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in July of 2011 is incompatible with military generals' qualified support based on "conditions on the ground," and their inevitable interpretation that the situation in Afghanistan demands more time, more lives, and more resources. I urge President Obama to demonstrate his resolve by immediately pledging significant and meaningful reductions to the U.S. military presence in Afghanistan beginning in July of 2011.
We must end America's longest war and we must bring our troops home.

VIDEO: Police Arrest 131 Antiwar Protesters In Front Of White House 16DEZ10

WASHINGTON -- Hoping to spark the country's silent majority into action, 131 antiwar protesters got themselves arrested Thursday, in one of the larger acts of civil disobedience in front of the White House in some time.
Carrying signs that frequently included question marks -- "Peace on earth?" and "How is the war economy working for you?" -- protesters organized by a Missouri-based veterans group marched up to the White House gates and refused to disperse, holding their ground for several hours on a snowy and blustery day.
Among those arrested was Daniel Ellsberg, the Vietnam-era whistleblower who leaked the Pentagon Papers as an act of protest in 1971. Thursday's arrest was his 80th.
All the arrests were appropriately peaceful although some protesters went limp, forcing police to carry them to the loaned Metrobuses waiting to take them to a booking facility. Only one protester actually attached himself to the gate with a bicycle lock.
All were charged with failure to obey lawful order, a misdemeanor, said Park Police spokesman David Schlosser.
Schlosser said the protesters would be released after either forfeiting $100 or accepting an assigned court date.
A new poll shows that a substantial majority of the country agrees with the protesters on some central points. As Amanda Terkel reports for the Huffington Post, the poll finds a record 60 percent of Americans now say the war in Afghanistan is not worth fighting.

Before the mass arrest, speakers at the rally, which was attended by at least 500 people, attacked the war and defended WikiLeaks and Bradley Manning, the army officer suspected of leaking secret State Department cables to the website.
Earlier on Thursday, Ellsberg told a Washington news conference that Manning and WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange were no more deserving of prosecution than the New York Times, which published the Pentagon Papers in 1971, or Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward, who helped uncover the Watergate conspiracy.
WATCH video excerpts of the arrests. Organizer Mike Ferner, the president of Veterans for Peace, gets dragged away, and Ellsberg flashes a peace sign before getting handcuffed.

We must end America's longest war and we must bring our troops home.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/16/white-house-antiwar-protesters-arrest_n_797899.html

5 Things The Afghan War Review Didn't Say 16DEZ10

by Alan Greenblatt

Enlarge Martin Bureau/AFP/Getty Images U.S. soldiers patrol around Kop Ahmed camp near Kandahar City in Afghanistan, Nov. 28. A review of the Obama administration's strategy in Afghanistan left some key questions unanswered.

Martin Bureau/AFP/Getty Images

U.S. soldiers patrol around Kop Ahmed camp near Kandahar City in Afghanistan, Nov. 28. A review of the Obama administration's strategy in Afghanistan left some key questions unanswered.

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December 16, 2010

As expected, the Obama administration's review of progress in the war in Afghanistan was mostly optimistic, outlining progress in key strategic areas such as beating back the Taliban and depleting the operational capacity of al-Qaida.
Still, the summary of the review that was released by the White House on Thursday leaves many questions unanswered. For the administration's strategy to succeed within the time frame it currently proposes — handing over primary security responsibility to the Afghans by 2014 — the following problem areas will have to be addressed:
1. The Afghan Government: State Department diplomats have complained that President Hamid Karzai has been an unreliable ally. Members of his government — notably his half-brother, Ahmed Wali Karzai, the chair of Kandahar's provincial council — have been accused of corruption. Drug dealing is rampant in the country, and the central government's authority is weak outside the capital, Kabul. Political resolution is key, but the review's language on governance questions and on the shape of an Afghan "end-state" is vague. "It's very military-focused and doesn't fundamentally deal with these broader issues of a sustainable political resolution down the road," says Steve Clemons, a senior fellow at the New America Foundation.

Highlights Of The Review

Taliban: Coalition forces are beating back the Taliban in southern provinces such as Helmand and Kandahar, but the review concedes that such success is "fragile and reversible."
Al-Qaida: With the terrorist group's senior leadership depleted and its safe havens in Pakistan less secure, its ability to launch attacks has been diminished, though not halted.
Pakistan: The report notes that al-Qaida's safe havens in Pakistan remain a "central" problem that needs to be addressed but is short on specifics about any new approach beyond "greater cooperation."
Afghanistan: The report is quiet about the sometimes strained relationship between the U.S. and the Afghan government.

The review mentions "corruption" just once, and at a press conference Thursday following the report's release, no one — not President Obama, not Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, not Defense Secretary Robert Gates — used the word in their prepared statements. That's in spite of a leaked diplomatic cable from U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan Karl Eikenberry that stated: "One of our major challenges in Afghanistan [is] how to fight corruption and connect the people to their government, when the key government officials are themselves corrupt."
2. The Afghan National Army: Coalition support has helped the Afghan army meet its targets in terms of troop buildup. But U.S. troops on the ground with whom NPR has talked say that Afghan force quality is a mixed bag. The majority of Afghan soldiers lack basic skills, including literacy. Preparing the Afghan army and police to be capable of providing security as Western troops depart has become an increasing focus of coalition efforts but remains a challenge.
3. NATO Commitment: At the organization's summit meeting last month, NATO allies agreed to Obama's call to maintain a large Western military presence in Afghanistan until 2014. Countries that were planning to pull out combat troops — notably, Canada — agreed to provide troops to help train the Afghan National Army. The administration's review summary highlights NATO's "enduring commitment beyond 2014," yet it's clear that European leaders face considerable political pressure back home to withdraw, and only Britain has a sizable number of troops on the ground. As a result, the war is becoming increasingly Americanized. On Thursday, Germany's foreign minister confirmed that country's intention to begin withdrawing its 4,600 troops from Afghanistan by the end of next year.