So now that I have a laptop at home and I am semi-retired I spend most of my daylight hours reading by the pool or working at the Windward Passage and when I come home at night I like to surf the internet.
Tonight while surfing the internet I was quite disturbed when I came across the following article US-troops-may-stay-in-Afghanistan-until-2024.html. If this article is in fact true it looks as though we are in talks with Afghanistan to sign a contractual agreement that would supposedly allow American military trainers, American special forces and American air power (estimates of 25,000 American soldiers) to remain in Afghanistan until 2024.
One of the biggest reasons I voted for the current president and the change he was offering was because I was hopeful that he would get us out of the war in Iraq and the war in Afghanistan once and for all. My thinking was there was a much better chance of that happening with Obama as president as opposed to McCain. To my dismay this hasn’t happened yet.
From what I have read our current cost right now to support 100,000 troops in Afghanistan is $1 billion per day. So if we agree to keep 25,000 American troops in Afghanistan until 2024 you can do the math, we’re talking about a lot of money that we quite frankly don’t have.
I think the Russian ambassador to Afghanistan said it best when he said “Afghanistan needs many other things apart from a permanent military presence. It needs economic help and it needs peace, military bases are not a tool for peace”. Well said Mr ambassador. When I see a picture like the one above I am outraged that we are doing what we are doing, isn’t anyone else outraged ?
Can any Republican, Independent or Democrat, anyone for that matter give me a logical reason as to why we need to be in Afghanistan for thirteen more years ? Bin Laden is dead and we need to get the heck out of there as soon as possible. If this deal is signed I will have no choice but to write in Ron Paul for President in 2012 since he is the only candidate who has promised to bring all of our troops home.
Webner House 
Yes, Ben people are outraged. LOTS of people are outraged. I voted for Obama too. While I admire his intellect, I wish he’d show some passion, a little bit of testicular fortitude would be in order on this issue. I believe that we are a continuing presence in Afghanistan because they have plentiful mineral deposits and lithium. President Clinton said, in a White House press conference last December, that the US has built or is building 20-30 new battery factories increasing the US world share from 2 to 20%. What do batteries use? Lithium!
As you pointed out, it costs a tremendous amount of $ to keep troops in Afghanistan, which doesn’t even account for the mental and physical injuries to our young people who will require medical treatment for the rest of their lives.
I can’t believe I’m saying this but Ron Paul looks pretty good.
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