[Peace-discuss] "diary bomb": ObamaNation Wants Taliban Talks, Not Military Escalation, in Afghanistan

[Robert Naiman]

[My contribution to today's Rethink Afghanistan "diary bomb."]

Americans elected President Obama in part based on his promise to put
diplomacy and international cooperation, rather than the use and
threat of military force, at the center of his foreign policy. With
respect to Afghanistan and Pakistan, while there have been some
encouraging signals, in terms of actually implemented policies the
folks who voted for Obama are not yet getting the "diplomacy first"
that they were promised. Last week the Washington Post reported that
55% of Democrats support negotiations with the Afghan Taliban, and
that 56% of Democrats think the U.S. should focus more on economic
development in Afghanistan than on defeating the Taliban militarily.

http://oxdown.firedoglake.com/diary/4609

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-naiman/obamanation-wants-taliban_b_183407.html

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/4/6/82737/39527
(with poll)

http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/node/41431

--
Robert Naiman
Just Foreign Policy
www.justforeignpolicy.org
naiman at justforeignpolicy.org