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Afghanistan and Democracy for July 3, 2009
Obama’s plan for Afghanistan
A recent face-to-face poll suggests that the majority of Afghans want peaceful negotiations with the Taliban.
- Afghans Want Peace Not More War by Dave Markland — Rabble.ca
- Afghans Want Reconciliation with Taliban — Angus Reid Global Monitor
Despite these wishes, the first major strike in Afghanistan under Obama was launched this week and included sending nearly 4,000 US Marines and 650 Afghan forces into Helmand province. Obama has declared a plan to pull all U.S. troops out of Iraq by August 2010, but it would appear he is not done with Afghanistan.
- U.S., Afghanistan Launch Big Push Against Taliban — CBC News, Canadian Press
- U.S. Launches Helmand Offensive Against Taliban by Mark Tran — The Guardian
At least new rules of engagement (oh, the euphemisms of war!) command troops to not to fire at the Taliban if there is any risk of civilian death or injury. Should this really be something new?
- Our Troops Get Tighter Rules of Engagement by Matthew Fisher — Winnipeg Free Press
Political theory and nationalist holidays
More troubling than the deployment of more troops into Afghanistan is the lack of any clear goal. I would attribute this, at least in part, to a lack of proper understanding of democracy or any of the ideals Western troops attempt to spread. Not to mention, the whole concept of westernization. So, what better time to brush up on our political theory than the first week of July, where the numerous celebrations of nationalism afford us many opportunities to resubmit our allegiance and devotion to the state and the political system we know very little about. Len Krimerman on the dilemma of democracy:
- Democracy’s Dilemma And/Or It’s Dangerous Dream by Len Krimerman — ZNet
And with a nod to our Southern neighbours, here is an interesting essay on the revolutionary pamphleteer whose words are used and abused by many American politicians, most recently during Obama’s inaugural address earlier this year. But, can you blame any of them? Thomas Paine’s passionate prose is so convincing which politician wouldn’t want to borrow a couple of phrases in an attempt to reawaken even the smallest nationalist sentiment?
- The Age of Paine by Scott Tucker — Truthdig
