U.S. troops’ minds are going to hell in a hand basket, according to the latest comprehensive survey of the mental health of U.S. soldiers and Marines waging war in Afghanistan.
“Psychologically, it is hard to imagine that these elevated levels of combat are not taking a toll on Soldiers,” the study concludes. “Reports of acute …
The real surge in Afghanistan isn’t the 30,000 additional troops President Obama sent there last year, but the 400% hike in close-air support missions from 2004 to 2010. Over that same time span, the number of weapons deployed on those missions ballooned from 86 to 5,101 — a 5,800% increase. You can track the trend in the chart …
The Vulcans were the foreign-policy realists of the George W. Bush Administration. Their presence on his campaign team before his 2000 election as President blunted suggestions that the Texas governor lacked sufficient overseas chops. But now one of those Vulcans has come forward to shed some light on the goings-on inside their …
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OK — admit it. It’s been awhile since the nation had such a sense of accomplishment. But the Navy SEALs — admired not only for their bravery, but for their willingness to do so invisibly — have touched a lot of folks around the country. What lawmaker …
John Kerry, the Massachusetts Democrat, has long had a hankering to serve as the nation’s top diplomat. Over the past weekend, he was on a whirlwind tour of the AfPak theater, where his words garnered headlines usually accorded the secretary of state:
Afghanistan May Be Open To New Path, Kerry Says, according to Sunday’s New York …
If our dealings with Pakistan are hampered by the same flawed assumptions we used in our hunt for Osama bin Laden, the road ahead for Washington and Islamabad is likely to be rocky. Over at Small Wars Journal, Will Chalmers, a research assistant at the Centre for Security, Armed Forces and Society at the Royal Military College of …
Mark Thompson’s post earlier today is a good walk-up to the debate on getting out of Afghanistan now that Osama bin Laden is dead. New reports also show more Republicans seeking an exit, and independent voters want to declare victory and leave.
An article in Politico today explores how the urge to leave has spread in the GOP from …
The White House and Pentagon won’t admit it, but everybody else knows the size and scope of the continuing U.S. presence in Afghanistan is now subject to debate. That’s the result of a perfect storm of factors — the killing of Osama bin Laden, the weariness of the American public, and the continuing zaniness of Afghan President …
Thanks to Ron Capps for highlighting the provocative story by Kelly Kennedy in USA Today about how contaminated dust in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Kuwait may have triggered high rates of respiratory, neurological, and heart ailments among U.S. troops. The dust is laden with toxic metals and bacteria.
I’m a genuine fan of the hugely …
The U.S. government can’t make up its mind when it comes to Osama bin Laden. Last Saturday, it held an unusual press conference where it released a snippet of video showing a feeble, aging terrorist staring at his flickering image on a small TV screen. On Wednesday, government officials were whispering about bin Laden’s bloody diary …
Over on Small Wars Journal this morning, AfPak vet Paul Overby is asking tough questions about the way forward in Afghanistan:
In the challenge of extricating ourselves from the war in Afghanistan, the most critical element is the actual and emotional heart of the opposition we are facing–the Taliban. This war which is taking an
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Are the Afghan insurgents stealing from the Viet Cong’s playbook? Colleague Tony Karon thinks so, over at Time‘s Global Spin blog.
