But what Yemen underscores is that al Qaida no longer needs Afghanistan as a base of operations. It can, and does, operate from any number of countries. In this Internet age, it can be anywhere. So the massive investment in rebuilding Afghanistan provide only the same false sense of security and accomplishment, as did the Maginot line after WW1.

Paying off the enemy to switch sides worked in Iraq, why not Afghanistan?

Bob Woodard says the sources (more than one) who leaked him the McChrystal report had “pretty pure” motives and were not trying to “box in” President Obama. He also insists that after the initial anger some in the White House told him the publication “did them a favor.” And that the scoop was in some respects as significant as the landmark Pentagon Papers case in 1971.

A compilation of three clips showing a UH60 Black Hawk landing on a mountaintop in Zabul, Afghanistan, to insert coalition ground forces Nov. 6. Lt. Col. Carey Wagen and co-pilot Chief Warrant Officer Jesse Ashhurst, both members of 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade, or Task Force Pegasus.

The strategy President Obama has settled on, even with its limitations and reservations, may be the best of bad options. But the speech fell short of making the case. Bottom line: Right strategy, wrong message.

One question that has to weigh heavy on President Obama as he charts a course that will no doubt lead to more American casualties: “Would I send my own son or daughter into this battle? Is it worth their lives?”

So far this year, at least 334 servicemembers have committed suicide compared with 297 killed in Afghanistan and 144 in Iraq, according to Congress​.org.

Cami McCormick, who inadvertently help launch my blog with a “bang,” is on the road to recovery at Walter Reed. Don’t bother reading this if you hate all reporters regardless of the quality of their work…

There’s a lot comparison to Vietnam going on these days, and there are many lessons from that conflict. One important one is that battlefield commanders, intent on achieving their objective, can lose sight of the big picture.

if you are wondering why the Obama administration is suddenly having serious second thoughts about poring more troops into Afghanistan, here’s the short version. A lot has changed in the past few months.