SECRET PLAN

AFGHANISTAN

President Obama is making a major policy speech at West Point tonight, and according to most news sources his plan for victory includes an increase of about 30,000 troops to Afghanistan over the next several months. That’s not to mention, of course, the tens of thousands of extra people and hundreds of billions of dollars required for support. I have one question: How do you define victory exactly?

What would the situation on the ground have to be in order for this administration, or any administration, to be able to say, “Okay, we win. Let’s go home.” Must there be a complete cessation of violence? That will never happen. Are we hoping for democracy in Afghanistan, an end to corruption in the Karzai government, a major increase in human rights? Don’t hold your breath. What is the definition of victory?

This is a tribal culture run by tribal war lords. They care about their neighborhoods, not about global politics or our love of democracy. I do not see anything but heartbreak for America in the middle east.