Children of the Taliban

Here is an analysis on the Pakistani Taliban:

1. Children join the taliban because the Taliban is perhaps the only chance of peace in the country. One teenager wanted to join the Taliban because the Pakistani army destroyed his village.

2. The war has seriously wounded the Pakistani youth. Schools are being destroyed and replaced by Madrassahs that teach nothing other than the Koran. Children whose innocence should be kept sacred are being taught war and violence. No matter who wins the war, the youth will never be the same.

3. The offensive by the pakistani army and the U.S. drones has not been as affective as hoped. Entire villages have been destroyed, and the Taliban are infiltrating major cities. Chaos has enveloped peaceful valleys that were previously untouched. The Taliban are expanding.

4. The Taliban are an organization that thrives in chaos. Pain and suffering only push members to their cause. Displaced and angry citizens are prime targets for recruitment.

Obama's Plan

I heard the Obama speech today on the radio and then the news. He was speaking about the war in Afghanistan. He outlined his plan of action for the next few years. He plans, in 2010, to add 33,000 more troops to the war effort. He intends to train the Afghan military so that we can withdraw from the area in eighteen months. He also wants to strengthen relations with Pakistan and invade the tribal areas. He has defined victory in Afghanistan as leaving no safe haven for the Taliban.

His plan is the best one that can be made by a politician who expects to be reelected. I am very happy that he has set a withdrawal date, so the war cannot go on indefinitely. It may or may not work, but it certainly will not work without the support of the Pakistani government. If they continue to refuse assistance from America, I fear that we will have to go in anyway, and that could lead to another war.

Our Brothers in Taliban Lands

It has been eight years since the tragedy of the twin towers, and we are still fighting a war. I have found recently that very few people on the homeland truly understand what is happening in the middle east. Here, I have outlined the four major problems that our troops face in Afghanistan.

1. The enemy has no face. The taliban do not wear a uniform, and they hide alongside the innocent civilians. We have no way of drawing first blood, as we have no way of knowing whose blood to draw.

2. Afghanistan is big. Afghanistan is a big place. We simply do not have the presence of troops to cover the entire area.

3. Afghan militia sucks. Our military is deadly on the offensive, and we can easily take every town in the country, but if we leave the land in the possession of the afghans, they are just as easily retaken by the taliban.

4. We have morals. The Taliban is not required to abide by the rules of war. They kill civilians, they bomb cities, and they employ child soldiers. We cannot do the same.