In a recent CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released October 19th, fifty-two percent of people say that the eight year long conflict in Afghanistan has turned into a situation like the U.S. faced in the Vietnam War, with 46 percent disagreeing. The CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll was conducted that prior Friday through Sunday, with 1,038 adult Americans questioned by telephone. The survey's sampling error is plus or minus 3 percentage points.
A slight majority, 59 percent of people questioned in the poll, also oppose sending more U.S. troops to Afghanistan. There are some similarities to make with American resentment to that of the Vietnam War but there are also some dissimilarities that make this a war that can have a sustainable positive outcome. I'm not saying we can thwart off terrorism all together but we can feel much safer for many years to come if we stay course in our fight against terrorism and it starts with finishing the mission in Afghanistan.
What is different is that the public can make the distinct relationship between Afghanistan and the war against terrorism which began with the 9/11 attacks in 2001. According to the survey, around two-thirds also feel that its unlikely that without American assistance, the Afghan government will be able to keep order in their country or prevent terrorists from using Afghanistan as a operation base for planning future attacks. With Afghanistan elections in chaos and no strong government, there's likely no solution without outside intervention.
I feel that we can prevent another Vietnam by expediting the fight against terrorist in Afghan and surrounding areas. Obama is hesistant to send the recommended 40,000 additional troops that the top U.S. commander states is a must to succeed. Not acting quickly will only assist with the terrorist regrouping and planning another attack such as 9/11. Our vested interest is obvious, protecting U.S. citizens here in America and abroad. In any war there will be casualties and while it's disheartning to hear about the rise in casualties among U.S. soldiers, to have a massive threat among civilians is even a greater risk.
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Lost in Transformation made a post about a poll cnn took that found most Americans believe the war on terror has become similar to the situation we faced in Vietnam. It is pointed out that a main difference is that Americans can link the war on terror to the attacks that occured on 9/11. This war is fought by volunteers, no one is being forced to die for a cause they don't believe in. And although any of our servicemen losing their lives is a tragedy, we have faced a mere fraction of the casualties experienced in the Vietnam War.
According to the blog post 59% of the public disagrees with sending more troops to Afghanistan, but at the same time 2/3rds of the public believe that without sending troops in, we will not be able to "prevent terrorists from using Afghanistan as a operation base for planning future attacks." If people are not willing to send more troops, but believe that without troops we endanger our safety, it is no wonder Americans believe that we are working our way into a war that we will not be able to pull out of successfully.
The poster believes that by speeding up fighting in Afghanistan we can avoid another Vietnam. But that is too convenient. It would be great to blink your eyes and the situation goes away, but that is not happening. Killing more people faster is not going to change their culture in a way that makes us safe from terrorism. There has to be a change from the ground up in the civilization.
The biggest factor is yet to be seen. If we stay another 8 years and end up leaving with our tail between our legs this may even be worse than Vietnam. However, if we can succeed in changing the culture and their view on our society then maybe the war will be able to end positively.
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