Who would have thought that, in the 21st Century, the United States would be involved in a conflict that in chronological length rivals some of the great wars of European history--the 30 Years War, the Hundred Years War? I propose that, in the future, we refer to the US involvement in Afghanistan as the 20 Years War.
Actually, if you include the Soviet invasion of that country and the US support of the mujahideen insurgents, it might well be called the 50 Years War.
And still there are those inside our military and outside, who insist we cannot withdraw, that two or three generations of US armed forces was not enough to achieve our goals and another generation (or two) is required. Isn't it just possible that our goals are simply not achievable, absent what was suggested in the early days of the conflict--bombing Afghanistan "back to the stone age"?
Afghanistan has proven to be an impassable wall for literally thousands of years, going back to Alexander the Great. What does it say that the Romans and Byzantines never even tried?
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