Our current “strategy” seems to be designed to make Iraq a vassal state of Iran while spending over a trillion dollars to improve the infrastructure in Afghanistan before turning it back over to the Taliban.
I haven’t seen it written so succinctly anywhere but that is sorta kinda how it looks from my bunker here in the land of smiles. I’m assuming that the won peace wouldn’t include these two outcomes – but what would it, should it look like?
Is it just me or isn’t something wrong when our Ruling Class either doesn’t know or won’t tell us what peace looks like? In the absence of leadership on this issue, I’ll venture one idea and ask for additional contributions from my fellow members of the Country Class.
We’ll know that we’ve won the peace when: The inconveniences and concerns of present day airline travel mirror those of the day before 9/11.
ST UnWoked & UnVaxxed! 
One would be wise to take the opinion of anyone who calls my Winning the Peace© strategy nothing more than rehashed nation-building with a grain of salt. Looking at you Haakon Dahl (AKA: Mrs. chicken-Hawk). One would be wiser yet to completely disregard the opinions (on military matters at least) of those who “Liked” her completely erroneous statement.
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The fact that he commented on Winning the Peace before reading it should be a red flag; his opinion on anything should be taken with a huge grain of salt.
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As to these totally sane thoughts put forth in the OP: Oh, for September 10, 2001.
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“Is it just me or isn’t something wrong when our Ruling Class either doesn’t know or won’t tell us what peace looks like?”
We need to get over the hope that most Mid-East countries share our goals of regional peace. The dream of a world caliphate (dominated by Sunnis or Shia) has existed for thousands of years and will not die anytime soon. I do not understand why Saudi Arabia, one of the richest countries on earth, seems to be reluctant to spend some of their own loot to help bring stability to the region that provides their source of wealth and stop building those madrassas that train young boys to be mass murderers. To put it crassly, dudes, this is bad for business and your lavish lifestyles! (But that is something for our very competent SoS Pompeo to negotiate.)
In any case, I’d like to see all American boots out of the region, continue to use our highly sophisticated military tech to destroy critical targets and impose further sanctions. This is what the Don has done this week and although he has diminished troops in the region from its height two years ago, I’d like to see him remove them all but the necessary intelligence operatives.
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Preach it Pastor!
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In the interest of hearing from one who has been there and is immersed in the military culture, this ‘armchair’ commentator/civilian is genuinely interested in your opinion.
Talk to me. This is a good post.
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A beautiful thing, Liz, about the American way is that civilians have just as much right and just as much ‘voice’ in these matters as those of us who have worn the uniform.
Never let anybody tell you otherwise.
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I have been talking to ya’ll (someone on L1 said ad nauseam but in not financially friendly terms) about Winning the Peace. Is there something in particular that you are looking for?
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This is a good post.
Thank you.
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“I have been talking to ya’ll (some have said ad nauseam) about Winning the Peace. Is there something in particular that you are looking for? ”
No.
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I’ve been thinking about your posts about FAOs. I wish we had some in Iran, who speak Farsi. Okay did they love Soleimani (looked like it last week at his funeral,) or hate him? ( looks like it this week…) why were all those people who had been protesting the Iranian influence in Iraq out there mourning Soleimani and trampling on their fellow citizens? And why don’t WE have Clue #1 about these issues?
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Anyone who is talking doesn’t know. Anyone who knows is not talking (publicly).
The CIA was, is, and always will be clueless. If nothing else the last 18-19 years should have taught us that the double naught spying business is too important to turn over to our so-called intel community. Put our true patriots (who all seem to be in the armed forces only) in charge of knowing what the hell is going on out there beyond our borders and the sooner the better.
1. Change my mind.
2. Show me where Winning the Peace (AKA: Not Nation-Building) is wrong.
3. Tell me the LBFM (do not google this if you do not already know what it means!!!) I slept with last night was not manna from heaven.
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So cute, ST! I’m entertaining myself trying to guess the acronym.
Here’s an evening poem by Vikram Seth. It wouldn’t apply to you, who appear NEVER to sleep alone! But for those of us who are lucky that way, it can be a blessing wished for the less fortunate:
“All you who sleep tonight
Far from the ones you love,
No hand to left or right
And emptiness above—
Know that you’re not alone,
The whole world shares your tears,
Some for two nights or one
And some for years and years.”
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This ol’ cowboy has spent many a night alone. Too many of them trying fall asleep in the mud with rain coming down sideways at a temperature just above freezing. In case it is not clear, that to say in the bosom of unadulterated misery.
These days I prefer to sleep in a warm and dry bed with my latest long haired dictionary by my side.
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First hint: I posted a picture of one here on our blog as a New Year’s gift to all.
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Liz you and I are in violent agreement concerning pulling ‘our boys’ out of the region. Your thinking on this is actually ahead of both the Pentagon and “The Don” on this one.
Unless we want to conduct total war (which we have not been willing to do since WW 2), conquer, and/or occupy we do not need boots on the ground (BOG). As a matter of fact and as witnessed recently with Iran’s ‘face-saving’ counterattack, BOGs are really nothing more than targets/ target practice for the enemy. Whatever they are guarding needs to be handed over to the so-called Partner Nation (PN) or returned to our shores.
We are setting up situations wherein we are limiting our own capabilities to respond. We need FAOs and/ or “intel” in the region only.
At this point (primarily due to fracking and such), we should be conducting punitive raids only in the Middle East and elsewhere for that matter. Energy independence (as Nanda will surely remember) is and was a key component of my original Winning the Peace concept as cast before the swine on L1.
I should do another series about the Middle East but no one would read it then call it nation-building. Bottom line is that the pretend countries the European colonial powers established by drawing lines on a map are all in disarray. The ancient kingdoms persevere.
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Clear the area of boots and annihilate the country with drones. At the risk of offending many on this site, I don’t give a flying **** about “innocent” women and children after watching that scene in American Sniper in which Legend was prepared to kill an 8 yr old that was threatening to blow up a platoon of Marines.
The wives are aiders and abettors and the boys will grow up to be our enemies.
America first. I will make no apologies.
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Collateral damage is another recent invention and/ or concern of the chicken-hawks in the Pentagon. They should concern themselves with winning some damn wars before they get all teary-eyed over the (sex) slaves and spawn of our mortal enemies.
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Liz, you asked a good question about the Middle East that has got my head spinning. Today’s silly OP about Iran punching above its weight is a place holder for that.
I hope to do your question justice, but it may take some time. In other words, I want to try to tell you what the hell is actually going on in the Middle East. You can tell by the results during just our lifetime that our fat cat intel community does not know and they are worse than ineffective. Truth be told, they are doing the nation (ours – in case you need reminding) they supposedly serve more harm than good.
Woe is me. Think I’ll move to some exotic land and bury my head in the sand (so to speak).
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