Actually, the answer is simple: the man who historians called America’s twelfth worst president went wrong in Afghanistan.
On September 11, 2001, Arabs hijacked four commercial airliners with a deadly plot, deadlier than the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor that started our entrance in World War Two. Two of the airplanes crashed into the two Twin Towers in New York City, one crashed into the Pentagon, and the fourth, which was supposed to destroy the US capitol, was forced down by the passengers. Apparently, Arabs get Americans as wrong as we got the Japanese in WWII.
Most of the conspirators died carrying out their evil plot, but the ones who planned it and recruited the rest of the terrorists were hiding in Afghanistan, and the Taliban, who ruled, shielded them.
That was an incredibly stupid mistake, as the leader himself, Osama Bin Laden, was killed by the US military in Pakistan under President Obama’s leadership. But not as stupid as what President Bush followed up with.
His reaction was “do something even if it’s wrong!” Of course, panic is always counterproductive. He decided to rid Afghanistan of its ruling Taliban and set up formerly outlawed schools for girls, change their very culture, and other things completely foreign to Afghans, while bombing and bombing. Then building and building.
Madness. All we needed to do was to show the Taliban, who will take back over as soon as we are gone (update: as we are pulling out, they are taking over), that messing with America is a lot more dangerous than poking the bear. Twenty years of them not ruling sure showed them, didn’t it?
What should have been done was a tit for tat in spades. It should have been a 100% air war, bombing all of Afghanistan’s meager infrastructure as well as Taliban strongholds, munitions, and hideouts. Bomb the God damned place for six months, declare victory, and come home. Let them think America is evil, they already thought that.
As we leave that accursed country, the Taliban is quickly taking it back. The Afghan army won't fight. It reminds me of the day a policeman came to our door when I was a teenager.
There was a cornfield between the school and the neighborhood, and going around would have added a mile to the walk. Of course, there was a path worn through the field. As I walked home through the field, Eddie and Bob were halfway through, waiting. “Hey, Steve, stick around,” Ed said.
“What’s Going on?”
“I’m going to kick Glen DeRous’ ass!” Now, Eddie was a really short fellow. Glen was a head and a half taller, and outweighed Ed. But Ed’s dad was an Illinois State Champion Golden Gloves boxer, and Eddie could kick anybody in the neighborhood’s ass. “He pushed a girl down.”
When Glen walked by, it was pathetic. Eddie beat him bloody, and Glen didn’t lift a finger to defend himself.
The cop asked why I didn’t help Glen. “I’m supposed to defend someone who refuses to defend himself?” The policeman agreed, and that was the end of it.
We gave the Afghans everything they needed to have a successful government and successful army. We trained their army for two decades. As we leave, they turn tail and run from the Taliban.
Why should we defend a country that won’t defend itself?
Three presidents later we’re still in the midst of the fallout the incompetent Bush started… before gasoline prices (both he and his vice president were oil men) more than quadrupled, making people put their mortgage money in their gas tanks to get to work, crashing the economy and nearly causing a new Great Depression.
President Obama should have gotten out of Afghanistan as soon as Bin Laden was killed.
Actually, the electoral college went wrong, because Bush lost the popular vote. I wonder if a President Gore would have done better?
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