What moderator approved ih8zionists post? Talking about asleep at the switch...

These are not "freedom fighters" they are terrorists for invading Iraq and Afghanistan and listening to their superiors when asked to kill. This is no different from the Nuremberg trials when the SS soldiers said "we were just obey order" how is this different from the US soldiers? at least the SS had a good reason to fight the dirty jews because of Dresden. what about US's story? 9/11? 9/11 was a self inflicted wound with the help of Israel. where is the proof? Black box recorders? pentagon cams? air flight cams? why didnt the backpacks burn in the explosion? why did bldg 7 explode? who planted the explosives in the twin towers? where was NORAD? so many questions not one answer has been proven. 9/11 was done by israel and US

This figure has already been widely reported by Columbia Professor and Nobel Prize Winner Joseph Stiglitz and Harvard Professor Linda Bilmes, in their book "The Three Trillion Dollar War: The True Cost of the Iraq Conflict".

In fact, the existence of half a million veterans with medical conditions of one sort or another IS THE MAIN REASON why the Professors say the war will end up costing so much. The US taxpayer will be stuck with the bill for doctors care and paying disability compensation cash to half a million veterans -- for decades. Hey wake up, we should of thought about that gigantic expense BEFORE we invaded Iraq.

Congratulations to you for actually reporting this point, which has been totally ignored by the media despite the veterans advocate groups and the academics trying repeatedly to explain it.

These wars have been a disgrace on so many fronts, it's ridiculous. On top of everything else, and no matter how selectively spun, these American casualty figures are absolutely sickening.

This is the blood bath I hoped to help US avoid when immediately after "9/11" and the loss of my fiancee (Sarah Miller Clark) on flight #77 I continuously admonished our government not to be "knee jerked" into war with a "stateless" enemy. Yes the Taliban was in Afghanistan, and Al Queda's braintrust was there, however it's army was global, not in size but in location. Invading Iraq was an un-necessary distraction,orchestrated to frame a the invasion as a "Just War."

Our strength at the time was, our strong military. Now it suffers from exhaustion, see-sawing morale issues, and waning support from the American public. Which is why I support the president's idea of a "pull out date" for our troops next year.

Lets leave these stateless enemies to fight weapons they can't see, or hear. Let us let those who consider us occupiers stand in their own breaches. Lets us deny them an enemy.

Political scientists, experts, think-tank gurus, and professional debaters may be sitting around scholarly tables, sipping their lattes, macchiattos, or whatever overly priced hot beverage is the cafe du jour for elitists, squaring off in arenas of formal methods of interactive and representational arguments (yes, I got that one from Wikipedia under Debate or debating). And somewhere else in a War College war room or, perhaps, at a certain undisclosed COIN safehouse, military historians, generals, and upper-brass strategists proffer statistics, battlefield reports, and intelligence as evidence for the case of simply bombing Afghanistan back into the Stone Age. Afterall, rebuilding a corrupt government which benefits an elusive and determined insurgency shouldn't be too difficult. Just look at what American occupational forces did in Iraq; a real bang-up job, indeed.

The foreign policy debacle which resembles an American giant haplessly struggling to free itself from a profoundly complex sandpit as scores of insurgent ants circle from all directions is unraveling and limping along at an alarmingly pathetic pace. Our enemies not only revel in our anguish but also bet the proverbial farm on American predictability. It's truly time for the White House to reevaluate its present position, underlying the need for genuine desire to accomodate the military and its leaders and in effect accept the reality that the nation is in a real-time war. It certainly is no picnic for both politician(s) and general(s) alike.

Yet, despite dwindling coalition confidence, primarily among the United Kingdom and France, American leaders (i.e. Obama Administration) are continuing to display an overt denial of the reality of said conflict, situation, fight against terrorism, or whatever one may want to call this war. There is no victory at hand because there is no decisive objective. What flag, ground or dictatorship are American forces striving to capture, claim, and terminate? Why has so much been spent over an exhausting 9-year stretch, where the military is doing its absolute best to win while the politicians (i.e. President Obama and the federal funky bunch) continue to focus on the political objectives of maintaining a righteous image in the eyes of voters and preserving future election victory.

The victory resides in consistent reduction of troops and casualties, a dignified exit from Afghanistan, and ongoing diplomatic, cultural, and democratic support of a struggling nation. There is no prize in an ongoing war that continues to usurp the patience and sacrifice of troops, coalition forces, and citizens with family members serving...over there. There is no prize in an extended trillion dollar budget for battles that bring American forces no closer to a decisive outcome other than likely death on foreign soil.

What it is...is what it is. The reality of the situation is: America is seen as an occupational force rather than a nation-building entity, and American military leaders and the President need to accept this reality and thereby focus on an exit strategy. The war needs to end now. Assuming for argument sake that America defeats the insurgents and victoriously frees Afghanistan from the Taliban tyranny? The victory will not quell rampant corruption, opium production, and anti-American sentiment. Gone are the days of colonization and the Powell Doctrine no longer applies.

American forces should have been fighting from the get-go on the same playing field as the insurgents, meaning small Special Ops strike forces, more reliance on drones and ground intel, and ultimately a progressive weed-and-seed program with the local culture and government. General Stanley McChrystal made significant improvements and changes while fostering alliances and building continuing rapport in the region, despite the reduction of much needed air support for ground troops and his later comments in the Rolling Stone article cited as "poor judgment," resulting in his dismissal. However, even with McChrystal's innovative SOC leadership and experience there was still no bankable victory. Perhaps, there never was in what will ultimately be a Pandora-like quagmire of American undoing.

The focus should be on 2011 and a decisive exit.