Afghanistan - what were the options?

I am having a hard time wrapping my head around this Afghanistan mess. The images of people clinging to planes and stories about Taliban going "door to door" are horrifying. But can we put politics aside and honestly talk about what was done right/wrong in the past 20 years?

My feeling is that the current result was inevitable, a matter of when not if. So if the US pulled out a year from now, 5 years, 10 years, the result would inevitably be the same. I think us being there from the start was a mistake - we should have gone in, taken out the folks we knew were responsible for attacking us, and gotten out. Staying 20 years probably made the problem worse in the long run.

Yeah, the result is disheartening. To me Biden's biggest blunder here is not with the withdrawal but with not being honest with himself or the rest of the country the reality of the result. He is an idiot for not knowing this would be the result and preparing for this result.

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in10RjFox · M

US could have gifted guns to civilians before withdrawing. That would have prevented Taliban go door to door.

You stay 20 years in a country but do nothing to people's livelihood. Terrorists are richer than people. There is no economy. In 20 years you could have brought about a new educated generation.

Nothing to account for the time and opportunity wasted.

trollslayer · 46-50, M

@in10RjFox Good thoughts. You can't hang this all on Biden. We had 20 years to plan for this and nobody did shit.

in10RjFox · M

@trollslayer Atleast he has taken a call. Maybe Taliban does a better job and brings about a better rule. If anyone to be blamed then it's Bush for not stipulating the exit plan or the mission.