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Afghanistan. Of the approximately 200 countries (depending on definition) in the world listed alphabetically, Afghanistan is first on the list. Up until a month ago it was hardly first on the list of importance to the media or to the average American citizen.
Unless you are a fan of foreign policy details or associated with the military, the thought of Afghanistan would hardly have crossed your mind because it has been simmering on a back burner for over a decade. But now that the event that public opinion has favored for some time has actually happened, the media, like too many cooks, has to stir up the pot.
In the past 20 years, up to and not including the 11 Marines, the Navy medic, and the Army soldier who were tragically caught in the terrorist bombing during the evacuation of Kabul, 2,448 American service members have been killed in Afghanistan along with 3,846 US contractors, approximately 66,000 Afghan military, 1,144 allies and NATO forces, 516 aid workers and journalists, with 47,245 recorded civilian deaths. The toll of this war in human life and sacrifice goes much deeper than the Kabul ISIS-K bombing. The media that we depend on is short-sighted. Current events must be considered in conjunction with history.
What do we know about Afghanistan anyway? It's a country in the Middle East of course. Or is it? Afghanistan is actually closer to Russia and shares a border with China. A now unstable Afghanistan has got to have them a bit concerned.
The large country of Iran separates it from the other middle-eastern countries we are familiar with, Iraq and Syria. Pakistan lies to the south. The Hindu-Kush Mountain range divides the northern provinces from the rest of the country; the physical terrain contributes to the divided factions, the many tribes with their own identities and cultural differences, that dwell in the abstract nation state of Afghanistan.
Ask any service member who has been there to hear how brutal the climate is; extremes in daily temperature, hot summers and cold winters, very little rainfall, deserts and mountains -- perfect for terrorists to hide out and operate from.
Despite the harsh environment, the Afghan people have survived through a recorded history dating back over 4,000 years. This is a country that has proven over the centuries to be impossible to unite under one flag, let alone establish a central democratic government. History shows that mission is a doomed one. Within the last century alone, there have been 19 different flags raised over its capital, the latest on Aug. 15 when the Taliban reclaimed Kabul, took down the flag of the Islamic Republic, and became the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. That flag may not last either, considering the Taliban is being challenged by even more militant groups like ISIS-K.
Next Saturday, we will observe the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on our soil by the terrorist group, Al Qaeda, launched from Afghanistan which had been under Taliban rule for about a decade. The loss of 3,000 innocent Americans more than justified George W. Bush's decision to go after the Al Qaeda terrorists and remove from power the Taliban that had harbored them.
That was accomplished, with the final ingredient being added by the raid under President Obama that killed Osama Bin Laden, the orchestrator of the attack on the U.S. But during his two terms, Bush's mission morphed into an attempt to rebuild Afghanistan in our image. With an entire generation living under increased freedom, with women given more rights, it became more and more difficult to end our protection and exit militarily, so the job was passed to a fourth president, Joe Biden.
So now, blame is being focused on Biden, for honoring his promise and having the courage to carry out a withdrawal from Afghanistan. We can't even see back as far as the previous president, during whose term 64 members of our military died in Afghanistan.
It is very sad that lives were lost in the final hours of this war, but just as those that gave their full measure before, they died because of terrorism.
Had the evacuation been carried out differently, there is no guarantee that ISIS-K or any other terrorist group would not have attacked anyway. But he should have known that the Afghan army would lay down their weapons and fold so quickly, right?
All indications were that the Afghan military would be able to hold out for at least awhile, giving time to evacuate troops and Afghan allies who helped American soldiers, they had been extensively trained and equipped by us after all.
President Trump talked the talk but didn't walk the walk. Instead of taking decisive action, he further compounded Biden's problems by not briefing his incoming administration and by a token reduction of our presence to 2,500, leaving Biden's full withdrawal with very little support. Biden was actually able to successfully extend the exit time by four months past Trump's deadline but his determination to end this longest war in U.S. history and not pass it on to a fifth president and another generation of our sons and daughters prevailed.
Many comparisons have been made to the Vietnam war, which was another disastrous open-ended war with far more casualties than Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. It's ending was not pretty, far worse than how Biden had to end this one with what became the largest air lift in history.
However, no one called for impeachment of Gerald Ford or Richard Nixon (for that reason anyway). The superficial self-serving right-wing political partisanship and the media that feeds off it will find blame and concentrate on any event that helps them win political points, ignoring any context or history around it.
Using the recent deaths of 13 heroes as a way to gain control diminishes their sacrifice and that of all the others who went before protecting the constitution of the United States of America and all it stands for.
From here on, Biden's plan is to fight terrorism where-ever it comes from. To modernize the way it is fought, using current strategies rather than those from 20 years ago- beginning with the avenging of the deaths of those we lost at Kabul via drone strikes, "over the horizon" attacks. To prevent any more unnecessary deaths. To learn from the past. To find a better recipe for fighting terrorism.
Susan Bigler is a Sheridan resident. Send comments to editorial@observertoday.com