[Peace-discuss] Fronts are back: a disgusting example

[C. G. Estabrook]

	Jon Soltz, Co-Founder of VoteVets.org,
	served [sic] as a captain in Operation Iraqi Freedom
	Posted March 27, 2009 | 11:20 AM (EST)
	Obama Got Afghanistan/Pakistan Right

For those of us who fought in Afghanistan and Iraq, it was extremely important 
that the new president get the situation in Afghanistan right. Not just for 
America's security, but for those troops still in Afghanistan, and those heading 
to Afghanistan to put their lives on the line in the war. With today's 
announcement, President Obama has shown that he "gets it." That's why we at 
VoteVets.org are supporting the plan with a petition, which you can sign on to, 
right here.

There's a lot to like about the plan. But, there are three key things I'm 
particularly focused on, that represent a stark departure from the previous 
administration. They show that this president not only has reasonable goals in 
the region, but a good idea of what it will take to get there.

Point One: The Military Can't Do It All

The president recognizes that the war against terrorists requires much more than 
just throwing troops at the problem. That alone will go a long way towards 
setting policies that make America safer, and taking the burden off our military.

The president said today, "To advance security, opportunity, and justice - not 
just in Kabul, but from the bottom up in the provinces - we need agricultural 
specialists and educators; engineers and lawyers.... These investments relieve 
the burden on our troops. They contribute directly to security. They make the 
American people safer. And they save us an enormous amount of money in the long 
run - because it is far cheaper to train a policeman to secure their village or 
to help a farmer seed a crop, than it is to send our troops to fight tour after 
tour of duty with no transition to Afghan responsibility."

This is key, and something that was lacking in the region for a long time. Those 
hardline radicals who want to take control thrive on poverty and misery of the 
people. The single best thing we can do to ensure that the Afghan people aren't 
so destitute and broken that they're tempted to join these radicals, is to send 
civilian training and humanitarian aid.

Point Two: Though it's the "War in Afghanistan," we need to treat it like a region

That the president made a point of including Pakistan in this strategy, offering 
greater aid to them if the Pakistani government makes more of an effort to work 
and coordinate with us, is as smart as it is practical.

Everyone - myself included - has not helped when we bind the efforts in the 
region under the name "The War in Afghanistan." This is a regional problem, that 
requires a regional solution.

President Obama understands to get the support of the Pakistani people, which 
will make it easier to get the help we need from the Pakistani government, it 
takes carrots. And his plan focuses squarely on that. His support for 
legislation sponsored by Senators John Kerry and Richard Lugar that authorizes 
$1.5 billion in direct support to the Pakistani people every year over the next 
five years, along with another bill that creates opportunity zones in the border 
region will go a long way towards getting the cooperation we need to really 
focus in on al Qaeda, and close in on them from the Pakistani and Afghan sides 
of the border region.

Point Three: There is a tighter focus, open to reaching out to some of the enemy

Maybe most importantly, this president has given up the pipe dream of setting up 
a European-style democracy in Afghanistan, and instead has refocused our goals 
on a more urgent mission - protecting America and the world from terrorism.

We've finally left fantasy-land, where America can simply go somewhere, topple a 
government, and western-style democracies will pop up and thrive. Afghanistan is 
a very different beast. And, while the president committed to helping build out 
infrastructure for the Afghan people, and improve the lives of the Pakistani 
people, he's not letting dreams of a grand new western democracy get in the way 
of more practical and tighter goals - namely, fighting al Qaeda and taking the 
region away as a home base for the terror network, forever.

To do so, the president recognized something that I wrote about last week - 
there are elements throughout the region that are fighting us now, but could 
become our partners. This might have been the most striking parts of the 
President's speech:

"There is an uncompromising core of the Taliban. They must be met with force, 
and they must be defeated. But there are also those who have taken up arms 
because of coercion, or simply for a price. These Afghans must have the option 
to choose a different course. That is why we will work with local leaders, the 
Afghan government, and international partners to have a reconciliation process 
in every province. As their ranks dwindle, an enemy that has nothing to offer 
the Afghan people but terror and repression must be further isolated. And we 
will continue to support the basic human rights of all Afghans - including women 
and girls."

I couldn't have put it better myself.

Now, will everything go exactly according to plan? Of course not. Nor is this 
going to be quick. But with the points above, and the rest that the President 
laid out, those of us who served finally have confidence that this President 
gets it, and will keep us on the right course - the reasonable and practical 
course. That's something we veterans have been waiting for.

Crossposted at VetVoice.com
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jon-soltz/obama-got-afghanistanpaki_b_179982.html