The Time Has Come

OBAMA IS PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES!!!!!!
I am confident that he will make the right decisions pertaining to the Afghanistan situation. He has already announced his views on this issue and he agrees that Afghanistan needs to be the focus.

With that said this is such a beautiful thing for me to witness as a young African- American and caucasion individual. I can only imagine how he feels to be the first multi-racial president of the united States. I'm proud that we were strong enough as a country to embrace this. I wasn't sure we were ready but, i guess we are.

What have i gained from this?

When i first started this blog i knew little to nothing about the Afghanistan issue. To be quite honest i didn't even know that we had troops in Afghanistan for as long as we have. Now i feel like i am way more educated on the topic, and have enough knowledge about it to hold my own opinion on the matter. While blogging i have tried to look at both sides of the arguments and have even followed blogs run by soldiers and Afghanistan citizens. But, i feel that if we should be in any war it should be in Afghanistan where the terrosism of 9/11 stemmed from. It is apparent in my blog posts that i don't agree with the Iraq war and support the change in focus from Iraq to Afghanistan. But, i want it to be clear that we should not just abandon Iraq, we have to finish what we started in both regions, but, now is the time to intensify action in Afghanistan. Especially with evidence of Al Qaeda rebuilding their troops in Pakistan.

I'm glad that i picked this issue to focus on in my blog. It was a significant issue focused on by both Obama and McCain in this election period. The 2008 election brought this issue to the surface once again and made me realize how important the outcome of the war in Afghanistan actually is to us. The war on terrorism started when Osama Bin Laden from Afghanistan organized the attack on the US. We need to find him and we need to eliminate him and his terrorist group as a threat to our country. I think it's important to be educated about the issues apparent in your government. Especially those that have the potential to affect the lives of our generation directly and dangerously. I now feel educated enough to voice my opinion on the issue. This project has enabled me to realize that we need to do something in Afghanistan.

You should check out my classmate's blogs!

The Drug War

This blog is worth visiting if you want a multi-sided view on the drug war in our world today. The blog focuses on the problems with specific drugs in America, but, also highlights the issue as it pertains to the rest of the world. This blogger frequently updates their blog and always blogging about certain drus that other people seem to forget about. I learned a lot from DR's page which is the main reason it's worth reading.

Velveeta Democracy

Veleveeta Democracy is not only a good blog to follow, but, an important blog. It focuses on the bailout plan and how the government plans to dig us out of the whole that our economy landed in. The blogger focuses on the complexity of the issue, and how many things actually resulted in the state of our economy besides the mortgage crisis. It's important to stay updated on this issue considering it's affecting so many American's and has the potential to affect so many more. So, this blog is a must read.


Iraq War

It is important to read this blog because it gives a view of an educated person against the Iraq War. It was important for me to check in on this blog when writing my own blog because the Iraq war and the Afghanistan war are very closely if not completley related. Even though the blogger is against the war they try to look at both sides of the arguments and still express their views on them. Once again this issue has a great impact on all Americans so this blog is a must read.

And The Future???

What do you think will happen to our country if the Afghanistan issue isn't focused on and solved in a timely fashion? I predict a constant state of fear among the citizens of our nation and an extremely decreased sense of national security. Even if this madness doesn't get the opportunity to occur on our soil the soldiers fighting on their soil would be in great danger. The amount of troops needed to win this fight on terror would be increased from it's already large number to one that would put this war on a completely different scale than it is now. More people would be affected, more families separated from their sons and daughters, and the economy would probably not get any better. If we let this matter stay on the back burner there is a possibility that we will be fighting the war on terror in 3 different theaters of war. Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan, which has recently been pinned as the new homeland for Al Qaeda and their area of rehabilitation. I know that i am taking an extreme stance on this issue. But, as an American citizen with a lot of years left to live in this country i feel more comfortable taking this position than a careless one assuming that no one could threaten a country so great. I also feel that our priority should be the young soldiers that physically have to deal with this threat. Collectively between Iraq and Afghanistan we have thousands of young men and women fighting for the safety of our country. What about their safety?

What happened to those officers?

In response to a comment on one of my recent blogs concerning the soldiers that have died at the hands of Afghanistan police officers, the surrounding soldiers shot and killed the police officers on the spot. These police officers were actual ones as well, considering there have been incidents of taliban and Al Qaeda memebers pretending to be Afghanistan police officers.

Even the Police???

An LA Times Newspaper article published on October 17th discusses the death of yet another US soldier in Afghanistan at the hand of a police officer. This is the second incident of a Afghan police officer killing a US soldier in the last month. This incident is rightly raising the paranoia that the Taliban and or Al Qaeda has begun to influence the police. Especially since both of these incidents occurred in towns close to the border of Pakistan. If this hypothesis is proven it could lead to major set backs for the US troops. Training the Afghanistan police and army is a big part of their strategy in fighting the Taliban.

Theory anyone?

The freedom of a nation as a whole is at stake if we do not succeed in our fight against terrorism in Afghanistan. The citizens of Afghanistan are being severely oppressed by the Taliban and Al Qaeda. Nevermind the fact that the Al Qaeda is the number one threat to our own national security and they are known to be rebuilding on the borders of Afghanistan and Pakistan. The issue most argued about among politicians within this issue is what to do about Pakistan. McCain wants to finish the war in Iraq before focusing too much on the Afghanistan issue, but acknowledges it as a problem. Obama on the other hand wants to move on from Iraq and focus more on this issue. He has even stated his support for the invasion of Pakistan to destroy the rebuilding that Al Qaeda has established in the small village towns among the borders of Pakistan. The increase in violence in this theatre of war has rehighlighted this issue among the candidates this year. I feel that we need to approach this issue as Obama plans to, because the more time we allow the organization to strengthen the harder it will be to defeat them in the end.

What's the governments stand in Afghanistan?

The Afghan President Hamid Karzai is working with the United States to secure his country against Al Qaeda and the Taliban. In the past the Afghan government has been known to support these groups. But, this government is working with us and supports our efforts in their country. As of recent the Afghan government has been holding peace meetings with the Taliban, who claim that they are no longer connected to Al Qaeda. Some, mostly American intelligence agents don't think that these negotiations are legitimate. If they are, their outcome is very crucial to the American position in the War against terrorism in Afghanistan and the Afghan governments belief that they cannot defeat the Taliban.

How About some Numbers?

As of June 2008 there are roughly 48, 250 troops in Afghanistan. The number of troops in Afghanistan started to increase greatly after 2006. The number was increased from 26,607 troops in January 2008 to 48, 250 in June in 5 months alone. The Bush administration didn't start increasing the troops in Afghanistan until the fighting started to be more dangerous for American troops. So far this year there have been 113 deaths in Afghanistan last year there were 111 deaths. Compared to the number of troops in Afghanistan the rate of death in US soldiers is significantly higher than that of US soldiers in Iraq. There are still about 146,000 troops in Iraq to date. Even though the situation seems to be getting significantly better.

The insurgent attacks have become more intense in the last couple of years. Their tactics have also changed, making it harder for the US soldiers. The many terrorist groups in Afghanistan including the Taliban still thrive. Al Qaeda itself is connected with many other dangerous terrorist groups around the world. Including the Egyptian Islamic Jihad and the several bases they hold around the world. The connections that Al Qaeda holds and the fact that they have bases all around the world is the most scary thing about the organization. The main 'troops' and leaders are in Afghanistan (Pakistan now) though, and we need to take advantage of this knowledge. If we take this opportunity to cripple the main base the bases spread all over won't have their central command.

Whoa Nationalization!

Following in England's footsteps the Bush administration decided to semi-nationalize banks in America. $250 billion was directly invested into banks. $125 billion to larger banks, Bank of America, CitiGroup etc. The other $125 billion will be used for smaller banks. The stock market has already made record leaps all over the world. But, is anybody really satisfied with this decision?

This plan does come with security for American tax dollars and small business. It also has restrictions to eliminate golden parachutes. But, this plan is extremely liberal move for our government. Maybe even too liberal. The last time our banks were nationalized was in the 1930's during the great depression. This move seems drastic considering the state of America then economically and the state of America now.

Why an Increase of Troops Would be Beneficial to our Generation

Al Qaeda according to the majority of experts is the United States' biggest threat. They have been directly connected to 9/11 and are the reason for the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. They are a decentralized organization that have bases all over the middle east. Since the US invasion of Afghanistan a good amount of key leaders of the group are thought to be hiding on the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan. Some even think that they are training troops in the more primitive villages of Pakistan. Al Qaeda's overall goal is to unite Muslims all over the world and eliminate western influence in these areas. Osama Bin Laden has stated that this can only be done through violence. Some may ask what this has to do with the United States, I personally don't see a connection either. But, Bin Laden views the United States as his biggest enemy and feels that the only way for his goal to succeed is by attacking this enemy.

Increasing the number of troops in Afghanistan and switching the focus from Iraq is crucial to our generation because our countries biggest threat is hiding underground in this region (and along the border of Pakistan) regrouping and plotting. If we let them have this time to regroup we will know nothing but a constant time of fighting for the safety of our country. It's frightening to think that the people who planned the attack of 9/11 are still living free and training more members possibly for another, stronger attack. I never viewed it this way until i started reading reports and articles about the terrorist groups and the war in Afghanistan. I was actually among the significant number of American's that had pushed Afghanistan to the back of my mind to protest the war in Iraq.

It is already evident in Afghanistan that the Taliban is learning from it's mistakes in Iraq. Making the war more difficult for the US troops. The war is probably even more difficult for them when most American's are so focused on the war in Iraq. President Bush just ordered a surge of the troops in Afghanistan at the beginning of this year. Due to the increase in fighting in Southern Afghanistan. ISAF Commander McNeill estimates that 400,000 troops would be needed to put Afghanistan under control. This illustrates how serious the risks for our country are with the Afghanistan issue. The death rate in Afghanistan is also considerably higher than that in Iraq. According to ABC news it is double the death rate in Iraq for US soldiers in Afghanistan.

If we stay focused on the war in Iraq while the crisis in Afghanistan is becoming more and more significant as more time goes by this is going to become a very big problem that our generation and future generations are going to have to deal with for years to come. The longer we give Al Qaeda to collaborate with other terrorist groups around the world, and build up their own troops on the borders of Afghanistan and Pakistan the harder it's going to be to secure the safety of our nation. Bush has made small steps to increase our efforts, he even went as far to approve special forces taking action in Pakistan. But, we need more than special operations to eliminate the influence of Al Qaeda in the middle east.

The time has come for us to actually directly deal with the terrorist threats to our country. Saddam Hussein was a dangerous man, but, their have been facts uncovered that show he had no connection with Bin Laden previous to 9/11. Now there is evidence of Al Qaeda operating in Iraq. This is proof of their sphere of influence growing. Hopefully both of the presidential candidates are ready for this challenge.

From the Bush Administration to a new Administration

Shortly After 9/11 President Bush sent troops into Afghanistan on October 7, 2001. He sent these troops with the goal to target the known bases of Al Qaeda and attempt to weaken the Taliban. It is evident that he was dedicated to finding Osama Bin Laden and seemed determined to provide some justice to America for 9/11. But, when He decided to invade Iraq in 2003 the focus was no longer on the war occurring in Afghanistan. All of a sudden anti-war activists were focused on the Iraq war and Afghanistan was left to the shadows.
Now that we are preparing for a new administrations the sun is starting to shine on Afghanistan again. I realized due to all the debates and interviews that we have had troops in Afghanistan for 7 years, and don't seem to be making any progress in our goal: to find Osama Bin Laden. When asked about this issue Obama and McCain have very different things to say.
Obama has been against the war in Iraq from the very beginning of it. Now that he is campaigning for Presidency he is making it clear to Americans that he supports a 16-month withdrawal plan from Iraq. Obama also makes it clear that he has not forgotten about Afghanistan and feels that our focus should be there. He even suggested increasing troops in Afghanistan when he met with General David Petraeus, who formerly was top American General of the Iraq war and now leads central command.
McCain also had a meeting with General Petraeus and claims that he would let Petraeus have the 'flexibility' he asks for concerning the time line of withdrawing from Iraq. Since day one McCain has supported the war in Iraq. He agrees that we need to work toward a 'stable peace' as he makes clear in his speech to the Republican Convention. But, he is against a withdrawal plan. He views the outcome of the war as key to fighting terrorism in the middle east, but, Iraq is not where this terrorist attack came from. McCain even encourages pressure on other middle eastern states like Syria and Iran. His views make me nervous for the future of America if he wins this election. He claims he wants a 'stable peace'. Then turns around and throws out other countries he feels should be 'pressured'.

What About Afghanistan?

Every American was hit hard by 9/11 in 2001. The unimaginable happened to our great county and no one was expecting it. For once the security of the United States was threatened on our homeland, just as it was after Pearl Harbor. But, where is the War taking place today? Iraq. It seems as though the Bush administration looked over the fact that these terrorist attacks were lead by Osama Bin laden, from Afghanistan. Instead of invading Afghanistan to find this horrible man, US troops were sent to Iraq for seemingly no reason.
Over the last 5 years hundreds of thousands of troops have been sent to Iraq. The number has significantly dropped since 2005, but, the war is still not over in Iraq. Troops were of course sent to Afghanistan as well, but, the numbers don't seem significant considering the fear Bin Laden established in our country.
Due to the lack of acknowledgment by the Bush administration i am very interested in the views that the presidential candidates of 2008 and the republican and democratic parties in general take on the Afghanistan issue. especially since I'm an American that feels that if the US should be involved in a war anywhere it should be Afghanistan.