[:)] Sorry if that thread title sounds like a life insurance commercial. I have questions ...

1) How much of what you are hearing about the war in Afghanistan reminds you of late '65 early '66 Vietnam? (White Star)
2) What do you think is the biggest mistake we could make in this war?(Afghanistan)


Before anybody gets riled up, let me just say that this is NOT some defeatist BS. I'm just looking for sincere opinions from people who have "Been there and done that".

Differences:

1) More high-mountain action
2) Colder winter
3) The religious element
4) CNN & Al-Jazeera
5) The enemy within
6) Sino-Soviet interests different
7) Jane Fonda unlikely to be welcomed by Taliban /Al Qaeda anytime soon, except perhaps for stoning.
8) We already have thousands of our own martyrs.
9) In the 60's, you might wonder if the people down the street we short on allegiance.  Today you might wonder if they harbored (or are) terrorists.
10) Support of neighboring countries seems thinner, people more hostile.
11) Troops in Afghanistan a little harder to supply by ship.
12) Support for draft even less than then.
13) Fewer Allies we can count on.
14) Pre-positioned land mines, if we only knew where they were.

Similarities:
1) Demonstrations.
2) Apologists.
3) Media whores of all genders.
4) Rules of Engagement written by my 7th grade schoolteacher, judging from consultation with JAG instead of pulling the trigger on Taliban big-wig.
5) "Celebrities" thinking their opinion counts more than joe six-pack's.
6) We can thank previous democrat administration for this one, too.
7) Bad guys hard to tell from civilians & some are the same.
8) Over-reliance on technology.
9) We may be the victims of our own 'high road" morality.
10) This is not just a military war, but an idealogical one as well.
11) War is a military one there, and a media war here.   Expect the same slanted coverage.

Biggest Mistake: Thinking Afghanistan alone.
 

It is a complete difference between then and now.

Then, there was no clear definition of winning the war and victory. To win the Vietnam war, was to bomb the sh!t out of Hanoi, and brought the war to the North, meaning the invasion of ground troops into North Vietnam. There were no such thing....and we lost.

Now, the present situation is a clear and present danger to our National Security.  That took priority above everything else. Our President have issued a clear Definition into this conflict "we will not falter and we will not fail", blessed by our Congress 100%, plus with the support of our allies, former cold war enemy, and the world, I don't think that we will fail....We just can't.

I'll buy in to the first category, but not the second yet.  I'll agree with the above posters.  Second worst thing wwe could do is send in ots of infantry, as opposed to the "specials" ther now.  The worst would be to try to support a particular government.

Get in, kill the enemy, get out.

Actually Bin Laden is counting on what has popularly come to be known as a defeat in Vietnam as happening again... He needs a victory over ground troops...he is hoping we get bogged down in the mountain passes the way the soviets did ..and he can kill many of our troops and cause the media to turn on the president..causing us to bend to his will...his ultimate goal is to spoil any pipeline being built through Afghansistan bringing Black Sea and Caspian oil to Asia..Bin would also like to unite all muslims to himself.... which isnt happening...we need imo to keep up the B52 strikes..denying the enemy any sanctuary...no safe zones...no time outs...keep up the pounding..denying food, medicne, travel, water, all and any resupply...while encouraging and rewarding deserters who bring us legitmate intel...We must hit them hard often and get out..causing them to rethink anything like supporting any future Bin Ladens...The vacume caused by the taliban departure will probably be filled by the russians..who wish to get their oil to market.. which is better at this point in time than Bin Laden using Afthanistan as a sanctuary