As three new combat brigades embark, there are some questions to contemplate:
1. After eight years of U.S. military protection, why have Afghan men not stepped up to protect their wives and children, their communities, and their nation?
2. Will they decide to do so in the next eighteen months and, if so, why now?
3. What exactly is the mission and where is it clearly spelled out? What exactly are General McCrystal’s orders?
4. What standards of democracy do we expect the Afghan government to meet, Jefferson’s or the Saudi royal family’s?
5. What ethical standards do we expect the Afghanistan government to meet and how do they differ from the lobbying system in Washington?
6. How is “victory” in Afghanistan defined now and will it be achieved by the summer of 2011?
7. Why would an indigenous insurgency suddenly decide to engage in decisive battles instead of merely waiting until the occupying force leaves?
8. Will the Pakistan government now decide to permit our combat forces to engage Afghan insurgents on a large scale on Pakistan territory?
9. Will our NATO allies increase their troop levels and for what period of time?
10. Are our Special Forces trained, equipped, and on stand-by to neutralize (destroy or remove) Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal?
America “goes not abroad in search of monsters to destroy.” (John Quincy Adams, Secretary of State, July 4, 1821.) Except when those monsters attack our country and our fellow citizens. They are the ones we should not have lost sight of.
Posted from Senator Hart's new blog. To comment, please visit Matters of Principle.
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