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


Sunday, November 2, 2014

News of the Day for Sunday, November 2, 2014

A man is killed and five people are injured by a Taliban missile attack in Alishing, Laghman province. The attack apparently targeted a military outpost but went awry and hit a civilian house. Separately in Laghman, in Alingar district, an attack on a rickshaw killed two civilians. Khaama's accounts are slightly different, putting the injury toll at 6 in the first attack and saying the second attack targeted a car, not a rickshaw.

Police say they thwarted a car bomb attack in southern Helmand province.

Afghan parliament passes a draft law to ban recruitment of child soldiers. Apparently both the army and the national police have employed underage boys.

The Guardian reviews "The Underground Girls of Kabul," which describes the common practice of pretending that girls are boys, both because of the greater prestige of sons and the greater opportunities the girls gain. Progress for women in Afghanistan has largely been limited to urban areas.

Afghan special forces said to kill 4 militants in southern Kandhar with ISAF air support. However, it seems it was actually the ISAF air strike that killed the militants.

Here's your daily MoI claptrap. They're only claiming 17 kills today.






Posted by Cervantes at 4:23 AM

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