The present-day U.S. military qualifies by any measure as highly professional, much more so than its Cold War predecessor. Yet the purpose of today’s professionals is not to preserve peace but to fight unending wars in distant places. Intoxicated by a post-Cold War belief in its own omnipotence, the United States allowed itself to be drawn into a long series of armed conflicts, almost all of them yielding unintended consequences and imposing greater than anticipated costs. Since the end of the Cold War, U.S. forces have destroyed many targets and killed many people. Only rarely, however, have they succeeded in accomplishing their assigned political purposes. . . . [F]rom our present vantage point, it becomes apparent that the “Revolution of ‘89” did not initiate a new era of history. At most, the events of that year fostered various unhelpful illusions that impeded our capacity to recognize and respond to the forces of change that actually matter.

Andrew Bacevich


Thursday, January 16, 2014

War News for Thursday, January 16, 2014


Pakistan sets up military base in troubled Swat Valley

Video shows U.S. soldier missing from Afghanistan

EU prepares post-2014 help for Afghanistan

Bomb attacks, shootings kill 75 in Iraq


Reported security incidents
#1: Eight Afghan civilians were killed following a US force's airstrike in eastern Afghanistan province of Parwan on Tuesday night, said a statement issued by the country 's Presidential Palace late on Wednesday. "Afghan President Hamid Karzai condemned in strongest terms a bombardment carried out by the US forces in Siya Gard District of Parwan Province which led to the death of one woman and seven children," the statement said.

#2: Four militants were killed and six others wounded in an army operation in the western Afghan province of Herat, said an army source on Thursday. "On a precision tip-off, the Afghan National Army (ANA) commandos late on Wednesday carried out a raid on a compound in Shindand district. The gunfight led to the killing of four militants, and injuring of six other armed insurgents,"army spokesman Naseto Nasiri told Xinhua.

#3: In a separate incident in northwest Shangla district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, two policemen were injured in a bomb attack. Police said that some unknown militants detonated a remote controlled explosive device near a checkpost, injuring two policemen who were admitted to a nearby hospital where both of them were reportedly in critical condition.

#4: An Afghan National Police (ANP) vehicle was damaged following a magnetic bomb explosion in capital Kabul on Thursday. Hashmatullah, spokesman for the security commandment of capital Kabul said the blast took place near Pul-e-Khishti mosque in the first district of Kabul city. Mr. Stanekzai further added that no casualties were reported following the blast, and only the police vehicle was damaged.

Posted by whisker at 4:15 AM

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