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Debating Afghanistan Strategy and Politics

I sat in my office this morning, working, and listened to this debate between Josh Foust and Michael Cohen in the background. This is a good smart discussion between two intelligent people about our Afghanistan strategy and policies (and politics) that is worth listening in on. Michael lost me at the end when he started channeling -- by his own admission, I might add -- Curtis LeMay. But overall this is an interesting talk. I think I agree with 90% of what Josh says -- we certainly see eye-to-eye on counter-narcotics -- and have sympathy for at least 70% of what Cohen says.

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5 comments

Your sympathetic treatment of your argumentative interlocutors is your most diabolical technique yet to suppress debate. At long last, sir, have you any decency?

Agreed. It must be a scheme.

@ AM- maybe its best to point to the 10% of Foust where you DISagree and 30% of Cohen?

Yeah, quit stifling the debate by encouraging the debate. You are fooling no one.

I think I like Robert Greenwald's latest installment on Afghanistan a little better.

It points out some of the subtle, recurring problems we seem to have on occasion. Problems like being in the wrong country.

When I see Petreaus admitting that Al Qaida is not in Afghanistan, then it just brings things full circle for me. The leadership is insane. They have checked out from reality. There is not a doubt in my head they are clinically insane.

The video also featured a local Afghan giving what sounded like very smart advice, specifically to the American military, on how to fight Al Qaida. He said we are doing it wrong, and he was pretty convincing.

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