F-16's shoot down Russian Su-24

[bigwheelzip]

... we are successfully occupying Afghanistan ....

... when it comes to nation building ...

The occupation of Afghanistan in and of itself is a failure. Had Bin Laden been killed when trapped in Tora Bora, instead of bribing his way through the Northern Alliance to Pakistan, that whole mission would have ended in December 2001. Occupation was never the mission. And the enemy just moved to the Northern Territories of Pakistan. If Pakistan becomes inhospitable, there are ungoverned lands around the globe suitable to their needs. We can't occupy them all.

Nation building a potpourri of religions and ethnicitys is a fools errand. If its going to be successful, it has to come from within those to be governed, not applied by a foreign power. Until that happens, we should stop breaking stable dictatorships. It only releases stockpiles of weapons to our enemies and creates more ungoverned lands.

The breakup of the former Yugoslavia is probably the best case scenario for reformation, after the end of dictatorship for these non-homogeneous lands.

 

[HOUSTON RICK]

The invasion of Afghanistan was a success in that Al Quieda no longer bases operations from Afghanistan with government assistance. I do not think Afghanistan has ever been successfully occupied - only patrolled. Unfortunately, the locals will continue killing each other under flimsy pretexts long after we are gone. We have somewhat cleaned the cesspool, so that it no longer stinks so bad from this hemisphere.

 

[gregintenn]

I'm accustomed to a battle being fought between the good guys and the bad guys. Lately, I'm having trouble picking out the good guys.

We are definitely living in interesting times.

 

[bushmaster1313]

I'm accustomed to a battle being fought between the good guys and the bad guys. Lately, I'm having trouble picking out the good guys.

We are definitely living in interesting times.

I read that to live in interesting times is a Chinese curse.