Should They Stay or Should They Go-Afghanistan

Should They Stay or Should They Go-Afghanistan

For the last 10 years, the United States has been embroiled in a conflict in the country of Afghanistan. Following the attacks of September 11, the populous of the United States was reeling from surprise and devastation. Very quickly, cries arose for answers to this horrendous event. In the scramble to provide answers the enemy was tracked to the country of Afghanistan. With the Afghans too weak to kick out these enemies, the United States and its allies joined forces to enter this country and kick out the Taliban. Of course, this was done to appease the reeling United States, but it was also done with the intention of strengthening a country that could not take care of itself.

Of course, in the beginning, Afghanistan was lost under the glare of the Iraq War, and very little attention was paid to it. Eventually, after Iraq faded, focus once again shifted to this middle-of-nowhere country where American troops were deployed. Slowly but surely, after years and years of conflict, the grumblings and lack of an end game started to grow louder and louder. When is victory achieved? What does a "W" look like in this conflict? Comparisons to Vietnam started to surface. By now, the war with the Taliban had become a nation building project. Americans were training their army and police forces. Americans were building their economy. When does it end?

Now, after ten years of troops lives lost and billions of dollars spent, the withdrawal cries have grown too large to ignore. The question now is whether or not the United States can leave this country and declare a victory. Can Afghanistan be stabilized, or will the Taliban simply move back in. Can America change the culture of this area so that they can participate in world affairs with the rest of the advanced nations? Is it even possible to change their mindset? Or, as some suggest, is there simply no was to change this culture without decades and generations of influences...