Maggie's Farm

No, not everyone. We see a person who recognizes the gravity of the deaths.


No, not everyone. The fundamental errors were made twenty years ago, and were easily foreseeable by those who had eyes to see. The precipitating event was the surrender agreement signed by the Trump administration , which excluded the government, and led to the release of thousands of Taliban soldiers.


That's the nature of the presidential system and the result of the U.S. electoral process.


That's just silly.


It could be seen as bluster, but you shouldn't discount the power and reach of the Americans.


The original deadline was May 1, set by the Trump administration.


Rather, the Taliban control access to the airport. You have to deal with them or go to war in the middle of a city.


They are not mutually exclusive. Understanding those you are negotiating with is essential to reaching any sort of accommodation. The Taliban's short-term interest is in getting the Americans out of Afghanistan.


The agreement made with the Trump administration was that the U.S. and the Taliban would refrain from attacking each other. That left holding the fort to the Afghans National Army.


Biden has pointedly said he is the responsible party. However, understanding what happened is important to avoiding a repeat of the last twenty years. A nonpartisan investigation of the withdrawal should also be conducted.


Standard procedure.

JJM: the reality of an epic US failure

Yes, it was an epic failure, a Greek tragedy spanning decades: The Quiet American, wherein Thomas Fowler plays the part of Cassandra.

We apologize for the length of the reply, but the writer made a number of points, and we thought they were each worth addressing, especially, the "Anyone can see that."

RebeccaH: Biden was "instructed".

Yes, Biden has a staff. That's how it works.

mudbug: Actually, it works the opposite of what you say.

The presidency is highly complex, and while the president has final say, it behooves him to work closely with advisors in order to have a consistent policy and message.

The president having a list of reporters to call upon is not a novelty.

Bill Carson: Then why the simplistic, fucked up Afghanistan withdrawal plan

There’s no graceful way to lose a war. No one has suggested a plan that would have worked, given the unworkable surrender agreement with the Taliban, and the sudden collapse of the Afghan National Army.

Bill Carson: The US didn't lose a war

Ah, semantics! So there was no "war" in Vietnam Afghanistan. It was a "police action."

Bill Carson: Begin AFG exfil in winter

So, perhaps the U.S. should have started the final drawdown in December. Trump was president at the time. (Trump also resisted giving the incoming Biden administration security briefings.)

Bill Carson: Maintain intel & air power for ANA

The U.S. had agreed not to attack the Taliban and the Taliban agreed not to attack the Americans during the drawdown, a promise they kept.

Bill Carson: Evac Civilians: Charities/NGOs

The Afghan government asked the U.S. not to evacuate NGOs as it would undermine the government. At that time, of course, the Afghan Armed Forces were expected to cover the U.S. withdrawal.

Bill Carson: Evac Civilians: USG pax

So withdraw contractors who were helping keep the Afghan Armed Forces in the field.

Bill Carson: Evac vetted Afghans

A flood of fleeing Afghans would definitely cause loss of confidence in the Afghan government, something they were against. Vetting takes time. A slow, gradual process might not have caused as many problems for the Afghan government, but the Trump administration put in place procedures meant to impede refugees.

Bill Carson: Transport high value equipment
Disable heavy arms

You mean take away weapons of the Afghan Armed Forces?

Bill Carson: Transfer Bagram

Using Bagram for the evacuation makes superficial sense, but that would require maintaining a 60 km corridor to Kabul with limited U.S. troops.

So, your plan was to bug out and purposefully allow Afghanistan to fall.