A war we cannot win

Date: 11/21/2014

After years of pushing back the date for an Afghan withdrawal, the United States, last month quietly signed a security agreement authorizing U.S. troops to stay for 10 more years. This action means we will have a military presence in Afghanistan for a minimum of 25 years.

As outlined by the White House and Pentagon, our troops will only be in an “advise and assist” capacity. The citizens of Western Massachusetts should understand that our troops, while defined as advisors, represent the first step toward drawing the US back into full military engagement.

During the internal debate with President Bush of whether to invade Iraq, Secretary of State Colin Powell, who had deep concerns over the implications of invading Iraq, stated, “if you break it, you own it.” Those words took on a life of their own and came to define the irresponsible actions leading to the Iraq War; much like the recklessness I witnessed during the Vietnam era and am now observing again with the assistance of an irresponsible Congress.

After 13 years of military action in the Middle East, I am concerned many have not learned the lessons and tragic implications of going into war without any hope of achieving victory. As a speaker in an anti-war rally in 2002 on the steps of City Hall during my tenure as mayor of Springfield, I believed then, as I do now, that going into that region militarily is a tragic mistake. As Sec. Powell noted, once you remove the current government, you become the government and bear the burden of the people in that country.

He was exactly right.

I was hopeful this president would not make the same mistake in Northern Iraq and Syria. However, with the Pentagon announcing an additional 1500 troops in route to Iraq in a “non-combat role” – exactly the same classification as the U.S. military role in Vietnam – to defend against ISIS, it seems as though the United States has positioned itself for years of a dangerous intervention.

This should be cause for great concern.

A bill proposed last month by President Obama and approved by Congress authorized greater military involvement in Iraq and Syria against ISIS in the amount of $550 million. This month, in a lame duck Congressional session, the President seeks $5.5 Billion to continue this misguided action.

I sense we are in for the long haul and more tragedy. Once in, there is no way out.

Reps. James McGovern, Niki Tsongas, Joe Kennedy III, Katherine Clark, John Tierney, Mike Capuano and Bill Keating all voted against the proposal.

Congressmen Richard Neal and Stephen Lynch voted to authorize military action, to my great disappointment.

One would have thought the U.S. would have learned from experiences in Vietnam, and Iraq, and Afghanistan.

The president and Congress are adopting a reckless policy that will keep us perpetually entrenched in a Middle East war at tremendous human and financial costs.

John Kerry, in 1971 upon returning home and reflecting on his service in Vietnam, testified to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee: “How do you ask a man to be the last man to die in Vietnam? How do you ask a man to be the last man to die for a mistake?”

The same questions should be asked today by Secretary of State John Kerry.

This religious war cannot be won by the United States and should not be fought.


Michael J. Albano
Longmeadow