One For Their Back Pocket

If Al Qaeda seized control of American cities and streets after 9/11, the uproar and backlash would be quick and excruciatingly severe. Though, let’s be honest, it would never even get that far.

So why are other countries supposed to sit back and accept it when we are the perpetrators?

While the exact count is unknown, it has been estimated that anywhere from 150,000, up to over a million civilians have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. While, not all of these are directly caused by U.S./NATO forces,  too many have been the result of deliberate or reckless actions at the hands of our U.S. Military.

Just today, it has been reported, that a U.S. soldier stationed in Kandahar, Afghanistan murdered 16 civilians and torched their bodies. This, while the repercussions are still being felt from Quran burnings in the country. And to find other examples, you don’t have to go too far back through news archives to discover the last time innocent Afghanis or Iraqis have been killed and/or desecrated by U.S. soldiers.

These events are unfortunate and result in perpetuating violence in the region. The Taliban has already promised to seek retribution for the murders, and there is sure to be resistance among the general population, as well. However, there is another danger at play. While the Taliban might be ingenuously outraged by a civilian massacre carried out by a U.S. soldier (no one likes competition), it also gives them something to put in their back pocket: a recruiting tool.

What better way to recruit members for your cause, than have to have your enemy kill innocent villagers in cold blood.

I understand that one man doesn’t represent a military of 1.5 million, or a country of over 300 million. However, tell that to a neighborhood of people who just lost sixteen family members to a man sporting a U.S. flag on his uniform. That, in combination with the fact, that these type of occurrences have happened before, and will likely happen again in the future, given our presence in the region, and you have a pretty well-justified argument for anti-American sentiment. (Blowback, anyone?)

Hey, it’s not like Americans have much room to talk on that front. After all, we started wars in two countries and another against a religion of over one billion, for the actions of nineteen.

Regardless, of whether or not this tragedy was carried out by a lone actor, or many, it brings us back to the question: What are we still doing there?           Short answer: More harm than good.

We are sure to see development and debate on this story in coming days.