U.S. exit could spark all-out Afghan civil war, say ex-U.S.-diplomats

I must of missed the time when the all-out Afghan Civil War ended. It has been pretty much non-stop since 1979 or so.

Honestly, I think that we have been meandering around without much of a forward thinking plan since 2003. If we are there to win, then we had best get serious about dismantling the narcotic trafficking and corruption via international aid sources of revenue the Taliban uses to fund its operations. If we are there to police the area as a constabulary force, we need to reduce the footprint to a more reactive, nimble force.
Either way, what we are doing right now doesn't seem to have a point or an end state.

That is going to have to happen at some point. They have forces that want to pull them back to the 14th century and they have forces that want to modernize and move into the 21st century. Those two world views are not really compatible.

The only way to resolve these things is normally through armed conflict. The ballot box normally does not resolve these wide chasms in world view inside a single country. In this case, it is primarily inside their borders and while our goal of a free Afghanistan is honorable and right, we cannot force freedom and a Republican form of government on them. They have to want freedom liberty and free and fair elections more than a 14th century heavy handed religious government that demands compliance or immediate and severe punishment or death.

So true, time to cut our losses.