Battleland

Why the Taliban Are Winning

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ISAF

Marines with 2nd Battalion, 9th Marine Regiment and Afghanistan National Army soldiers leave their CH-53E helicopter in Helmand Province, Afghanistan.

Navy SEAL Reed Kitchen concludes that after 10 months in eastern Afghanistan last year, the U.S. military is using the wrong yardsticks to measure progress:

Let’s rewrite our metrics of success to reflect our effect on the population, with measures such as:  economic activity at bazaars, unsolicited enemy reporting from villagers, and longevity of local officials; as opposed to the input metrics of enemy killed, dollars spent, and Afghan troops trained.

Good after-action report on his tour over at Small Wars Journal.