For the record: Washington doesn't know how to win a war....

President Obama (our oh-so-glorious leader) recently had some issues with General Stanley McCrystal, the coalition commander in Afghanistan, and McCrystal was forced (for lack of a better word) to step down- or resign- as the theater commander. Now it seems General David Petraeus- the CENTCOM Commander- is being brought in to take the place of Gen McCrystal. Obama still claims a US Troop draw down by June '11 and this I believe is a mistake. Now, to get my cards on the table, I've never been to the US Military War College (like Generals Petraeus and McCrystal), I've never led troops in combat, and I've never studied Counter-Insurgency Tactics (COIN) in that great of extent, but in my experience as a US Army Intelligence professional, I do feel that I have a bit more ground to speak from than a man who ran for the office of the President after less than 2 years in the Senate, no military service to show for, and no real experience in studying our enemies, our enemy's Tactics and procedures. Having spent 12 months in Afghanistan, and seeing first hand what the hell is actually going on there- and having been subject to the Rules of Engagement (R.O.E.), I do know that the way things are going currently, a draw down by an means this time next year is a bad idea, and frankly, it's quite foolish. Now, with the way the situation is going, with 85 Coalition casualties this month so far, and several sectors of the country still controlled by the Taliban, I feel that there would have to be some very serious steps in the right direction very soon, and very swiftly in order for Obama to get his wishes.
One of the prime reasons McCrystal got in trouble for his criticism of his superiors was because they weren't giving him what he needed to win the war, they were not letting him lead the way he wanted, and they were partially tying his hands in terms of what policies and strategies he wanted to implement but couldn't. Personally, and with all due respect to our duly (sort or) elected leaders, these bureaucrats in D.C. don't know fuck all about fighting, much less winning a war. I'm also very insulted by people referring to Operation Enduring Freedom (IE: The War in Afghanistan) as "Obama's War." Really? So he was in office on Tuesday, September 11, 2001? He was the one that ordered TF Dagger, TF Ranger, and Tier1 into Afghanistan to make contact with the Northern Alliance and hunt down Bin Laden? I didn't think so. This is/was/and will be Bush's war, give the man some credit. Obama just wants to be known as the president who brought the troops home in Iraq and Afghanistan. While Iraq is much more stable than it was years ago, Afghanistan still has a long way to go, and 2011 is a little too soon to pass the buck over to the ANA and ANP (Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police, respectively).
So in conclusion, let the officers and NCOs on the ground, the ones who get the knowledge at face value, in full, without any delusion by advisors, aides, and directors, fight the war the way they need to. Allow Gen Petraeus to modify the ROE as he sees necessary, make the decisions he needs, and for crying out loud, GIVE HIM THE FUCKING RESOURCES he asks for, unlike his predecessor (McCrystal asked for 65,000 troops, Obama pledged 30,000). There is no way Washington can win a war being a bunch of armchair generals who have 2nd, 3rd or even 4th hand word from the field. Give the power to the commanders on the ground, let them fight without all the stupid red tape and bureaucratic nonsense, and perhaps, just perhaps, we'll win sometime before I have to worry about my children having to go fight the same damn war I did.
That's my opinion, and now you can consider yourselves enlightened.