U.S. Army soldiers hold their American flags and awards for winning the Thor Warrior Challenge on Forward Operating Base Salerno in Khost province, Afghanistan, Nov. 5, 2011. The soldiers are assigned to the 1st Infantry Divison's Company C, 3rd Brigade Combat Team. The Thor Warrior Challenge is a grueling physical fitness competition done in full combat gear that includes a push-ups and sit-ups contest and a two-mile run carrying full ammunition cans. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Ken Scar
They Can Do It: Our Troops Can Win In Afghanistan. But The Key Battleground Is In Washington. -- Max Boot, Weekly Standard
n any war there is often a disconnect between on-the-ground reality and perceptions back home. But rarely has there been such a yawning chasm as with Afghanistan today.
Back home, the general feeling is that the war effort is either failing or idling in neutral. A casual newsreader may note the recent suicide bombing of an armored NATO bus in Kabul, a terrorist assault on the U.S. embassy in September, high-profile assassinations (including that of former president Burhanuddin Rabbani), some of President Karzai’s disparaging comments about the United States—and not much else. In Washington all the talk is about how quickly we can withdraw—not about how to achieve “victory,” a word that has been conspicuously missing during much of the public debate over this 10-year-old conflict.
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Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials
The Pretender: A clandestine meeting and the fate of Qaddafi’s favorite son. -- Bernard-Henri Levy, The New Republic
A new Europe must be built on the ruins of the old -- Simon Jenkins, The Guardian
What Comes Next for Troubled Italy? -- Florian Diekmann and Christian Teevs, Spiegel Online
Greeks Vexed By Growing Crime -- Paul Glader, Spiegel Online
Radical Islam in the heart of Europe -- Jeffrey T. Kuhner, The Washington Times
The Other Indonesia: Indonesia's Appalling Treatment Of Religious Minorities -- Emily Rauhala, Time
Good Morning, Vietnam! -- Joel Kotkin and Jane Le Skaife, The American
The Wilson Ramos Kidnapping: Another Major League Reminder of Venezuela's Crime Crisis -- Tim Padgett, Time
Does Chuck Norris offer hope to Iraq? -- Jeff Schogol, Stars and Stripes
Media vs. the Military - WT editorial
Keystone decision a setback for U.S.-Canada relations -- Barrie Mckenna And Nathan Vanderklippe, Globe And Mail
Obama’s Pipeline Punt May Not Be as Politically Astute as He Thinks -- Jonathan S. Tobin, Commentary
Why Mario Draghi Has the Hardest Job In the World -- Ryan Avent, New Republic