How To Lose a War

The media hasn't been paying attention and Obama neglects to comment on it but we are losing a war that was once won in Afghanistan.

Obama cares about domestic issues such as health care, the failed stimulus and the "cash for clunkers" debacle yet can't summon up words to support our men and women in uniform who are dying at a higher rate than ever before. Three more died today and we hear nothing from the Commander in Chief.

The situation is so bad that our coalition partners have taken the rare step of criticizing the approach we are currently taking:

As for Britain's roughly 9,000 troops in Afghanistan -- who in July suffered their worst month since the 2001 invasion with 22 deaths -- the members of parliament (MPs) said their role has seen "significant mission creep".

They were initially sent to counter international terrorism and are now working on areas like fighting the drugs trade and counter-insurgency, it said, adding the military had not been given "clear direction".

"We conclude that the UK's mission in Afghanistan has taken on a significantly different and considerably expanded character since the first British troops were deployed there in 2001," the report said.

"The UK deployment to Helmand (province) was undermined by unrealistic planning at senior levels, poor coordination between Whitehall (government) departments and crucially, a failure to provide the military with clear direction."

Britain's role as lead international partner on counter-narcotics was "a poisoned chalice", the report said, adding there was "little evidence" to suggest that cuts in poppy cultivation were down to deliberate strategy.

74 coalition troops died while 49 Americans died in July and August has started off even more deadly.

While Obama has a beer with a racist professor, our men and women are fighting with inadequate direction, a dearth of reinforcements and an enemy that is emboldened. We risk alienating our allies who we will need at some future date.

This war is Obama's war. He stressed that we were distracted by the Iraq invasion and that the true battle in the War on Terror was Afghanistan. When he became the CinC, he voted present and the media has been complicit by not splashing every death across the front page as they did in the Iraq conflict.

Iraq showed that a clear, concise approach in concert with strong leadership and changing methods when required can result in a victory over radical Islam. We are doing none of these things in Afghanistan.

During the worst days of the Iraq War, the left was harping that Bush was not providing our troops with adequate armor and sub par protection for humvees. Now they are silent while our president is not only not acknowledging the deaths of these heroes but is ignoring them altogether. That's a slap in the face to each and every person now serving and the veterans who served before them.