One quick statistic will demonstrate the difference:

How many US troops have died in Germany and Japan in the past 64 years? I’ve looked quickly, but haven’t found any. I’m sure there must be some, but the number is likely less than 100 in 64 years, and I doubt any of those deaths would be considered combat deaths.

How many US troops have dies combat deaths in Afghanistan and Iraq in the past 8 years? 5,299. 932 have died in Afghanistan alone, and 302 of those deaths occurred in 2009. http://icasualties.org/

That’s how the situation is different.

And no, you didn’t misunderstand his intentions. But at the same time, we’ll be like we were in Germany and Japan, and when we leave Afghanistan it will be a better place than before we screwed it up with our invasion.

Iraq, different matter. I don’t know why we ever went in there.

And, you know one self described conservative who supports Obama. At least on this issue. Frankly, in many issues.

But not health care. At least, not what I’ve seen so far. I’m not opposed to universal access on principle, but am opposed to most of the plans put forth so far.

I agree that our army and armed forces in general are overwhelmingly humanitarian. I am not blaming them for following orders or doing their jobs to the best of their ability. My venom is directed toward our political leaders who are too chicken to realize that making peace takes a will far stronger than making war.

Did I misunderstand Obama’s intent? Is he sending these additional 30,000 troops to Afghanistan on a humanitarian mission?

Germany and Japan were different situations than Afghanistan and Iraq. (Talk about me making use of red herrings . . . )

Personally I think it is a good start. We helped make the mess, we should clean it up. In many ways, it is like Viet Nam. The entire “war” shifted on us while we weren’t paying attention, and we fell behind. We do that. AS a rule, it seems America is slow to change.

And I like that passage from Romans. And I think, if ever in history there was an Army that held true to that passage, it would be ours. I’m not saying they are doing it perfectly, but I’d argue that never before in history has there been a more humanitarian military than our own.

And before you throw torture or some other red herring into the mix, remember that those actions were rare, exceptions and illegal or at least questionable. But in many armies around the world today, and most armies in the past (including our own) they were the norm, and no one would have batted an eye to them.

Question, how long did we stay in Germany and Japan? I forget.