Obama’s broken war promises

Congratulations to Bruce Ramsey for his column “The nation owes its soldiers a war worthy of their blood” [Opinion, Nov. 11].

Ramsey pointed out the all-important fact that we have failed to learn even after our disastrous misadventure of the Vietnam War. Namely, that an occupied people will always fight first and foremost to rid their country of the occupiers exactly as we would do under similar circumstances.

More American soldiers can only result in more death, destruction and waste. We can never change Afghanistan into our type of democracy by military force.

What a tragedy that President Obama is following the Bush-Cheney military policies instead of constructively rethinking the problem as he promised to do during his campaign.

— Morton S. Wood, Seattle

Pursuing peace and justice

Instead of owing its soldiers a war worthy of their blood, I would prefer if our nation decided it owes its soldiers — and the rest of us — a life dedicated to the pursuit of peace and justice.

— Jerome Chroman, Seattle

Monetary cost of Afghanistan, Iraq too high

Why is it that when government thinks about programs for Americans, everyone harps on the cost, and when we go to war, cost is at most an annoying afterthought [“Looking back with doubts and hope,” page one, Nov. 11]?

We are spending about $2.5 billion per month on Iraq and Afghanistan. That is $300 billion over 10 years. Here are some choices for that $300 billion: cut taxes, extend unemployment insurance benefits, reduce the budget deficits, aid struggling state governments, pay $300 billion of the $1.1 trillion cost of new health-care reform.

Whatever your political persuasion, any of the above is better than squandering the money, and the lives of our brave American fighters, in Afghanistan and Iraq.

People from the left, such as Robert Greenwald on his video series “Rethinking Afghanistan,” and on the right, such as George F. Will [“The corruption of strangers,” Opinion, syndicated column, Nov. 6], are calling for our withdrawal.

We are creating enemies by killing civilians in Afghanistan. We would likely become bogged down there, just as the Soviets did.

Afghanistan’s president was elected in a stolen election, and his brother is a suspected drug dealer. They don’t represent our ideals, and don’t deserve our support.

Recent estimates are that fewer than 100 al-Qaida operatives are now in Afghanistan. And they will always find somewhere to go.

Grab $100 of your own hard-earned money, and hold it in your hand. Then ask yourself how much of that money you want to send to the drug-dealing brother of Hamid Karzai. And ask yourself how much of that you would want to spend on a better life here in the U.S. for yourself and your kids.

Hey, spend some of it on wine, women and song, and then waste the rest of it in Afghanistan.

— Michael Mockovak, Newcastle