Mehlaqa Samdani

December 11, 2019

For those who believe the U.S. should intervene militarily in other countries to save local populations, the Washington Post report on U.S. efforts to rebuild Afghanistan should serve as a sobering reminder. With little knowledge of local culture, politics, traditions, our neo-colonial experiments in nation-building do more harm than good.

For those who believe everything the U.S. government tells them about its misadventures abroad, should know that governments, both Democrat and Republican, lie to their people--it is an obvious point, and yet, our gullibility and failure to hold our governments accountable result in the death and displacement of tens of thousands around the globe.

For those who believe throwing money at a problem will solve it, should know that since it began in 2001, the war in Afghanistan has cost more than $975 billion. The Taliban remain undefeated, corruption has soared (indeed exacerbated by the billions poured in), and believe it or not, many Afghan women continue to wear burqas!

In a war where U.S. government agencies were confused about their ultimate mission, more than 43,000 Afghan civilians died. 2,300 American soldiers lost their lives, and more than 20,000 were injured. The Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America estimate that, on average, 20 veterans commit suicide every day. Medical and disability treatment for veterans will cost $1 trillion over the next 40 years.

Yes, there are militant groups around the world that potentially pose a threat to the United States. However, endless occupations of countries to counter that threat is wrong and often backfires—until our elected leaders recognize their own complicity in aggravating the risk, disastrous campaigns with staggering human and economic costs will continue.