Posted on 03/02/2011 5:47:40 PM PST by Eva
By pumping more than $100 million into a hydropower plant, the United States sought to improve the lives of Afghans and win the hearts and minds of tribesmen and farmers who might otherwise turn to the Taliban insurgency. Instead, a prominent outside Pentagon adviser argues, the bungled boondoggle ended up funding the insurgents while doing little to help the United States end the war and bring troops home.
....Many questions remain unanswered over the lasting effects that billions of dollars in American aid will have, especially as areas of the country are transferred to the control of Afghanistan's government and it takes the lead in the battle for supremacy with the Taliban.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
This is the clearest condemnation of the Obama military policy that I have ever read. It's long, but worth it.
They don’t want you to know how much of that money is being kicked back to American politicians. Why else would they give them billions?
US should cut ALL aid. Unless for a specific disaster. Otherwise, nothing.
Cut it and leave that turd-world country.
I’d like to see ALL aid to the Middle East cut, all except Israel. No more aid to countries that hate America.
I’d like to see ALL aid to the Middle East cut, all except Israel. No more aid to countries that hate America.
I’m afraid that Israel is going to continue to need our help and is really our only ally in the Middle East.
I’d like to see us completely pull back from the Middle East, taking all our equipment along with us. I do think that we should leave a carrier there to defend Israel, though.
That’s different. That’s specific. I was just referencing the generic “foreign aid” that goes all over the place, mostly to people who hate us, when we can’t afford it.
Pray tell, what do you think of Bush military policy regarding Afghanistan, then?
Former WH Adviser Bruce Riedel was just saying on Al Jazeera that 0 inherited a huge strategic mistake from Bush and now is shifting resources to focuse on population centers. Didn’t 0 promise to ramp up the 0 as one of his campaign issues?
shoud be: ... ramp up the war as one of his campaign promises..
Agreed.
Did you read the article??? Obama has turned the military into the Peace Corps and is spending billions of dollars building infrastructure for the Afghanis while risking the lives of our military men. There were calls in England for a re-evaluation of the Obama policy in Afghanistan today, as well.
Cut and run, and take as much as we can with us. Cut our losses and get the heck out of there.
What I thought of Bush’s policies??? I supported going in there, but we were in an unsustainable holding pattern. Everything in the M.E. has changed now and there is no point in staying. No point at all.
I mentioned that we needed a carrier to defend Israel. I guess we need another to defend some of our oil trade lines.
Geez, that’s the first time that I thought about that, the oil trade lines that cross the Pacific, part of the cause of the war in the Pacific WWII. China has been making moves on those islands that all shipping must go through. I forget the name of them.
The writer was upset over an article that was on at least a dozen inter-net sites today, appearing on FreeRepublic?
If you posted it earlier, that was probably the reason that it appeared on so many other sites. You did the guy a favor.
I've also followed our progress, or lack thereof, in Afghanistan since 2001, which I why I'm somewhat dismayed you seem to think our failing nation building attempt is something new.
I did wonder who approved the building of the dam. Those things don’t get built over night. It is more than just the nation building. Obama is misusing the military as international social workers, a job for which they are not particularly well suited.
Also, where Bush was winding down Afghanistan, Obama doubled down on it at a time we should have been pulling out, declaring a victory and moving on.
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