Why wait 'til end of year to withdraw?
The WikiLeaks revelations - nothing really new, just an emphatic revelation of truth instead of spin - explain why an American "victory" in Afghanistan is impossible. It exposes the truth of why Pakistan is pursuing a contradictory dual policy under American pressure. Overt support for the U.S. and simultaneously covert support for the Taliban (both in Pakistan's national interest, not ours).
When President Bush invaded Afghanistan with the full occupying force of an army instead of a swat team, he made the egregious mistake of treating our real enemy al-Qaida as a nation instead of a gang of terrorists. The Taliban were an extension of the anti-Soviet mujahedeen. Had we not rushed into war, we probably could have negotiated with them to turn Osama bin Laden over to us.
Then Bush went further into stupidity by declaring war on an abstract force (terrorism) - way beyond any nation's capacity. Obama's modified strategy at least dropped the grossly insane war against terror and gave us limited goals, but he should have repudiated the Bush ignorance altogether and reversed course.
Why wait until December to declare our current policy there a failure? A policy of withdrawal now will save billions of dollars needed to solve our economic problems (also brought on by Bush) and save countless lives as well.
Marion J. Reis
Wheaton