The War Isn't Over Yet

In the article This War can Still Be Won, Army special forces officer Major Fernando Lujan makes a great argument that the war in Afghanistan can be won. Major Lujan spent 14 months in Afghanistan and lived with Afghan soldiers and got first hand experience on what was really going on in the war. In the article Major Lujan talks to Afghan soldiers who tell him how the Taliban ruled the land in Helmand and Kandahar provinces until 2010 when U.S. and ally troops started to take it back. I fully agree and know it to be fact because from April 2010 to November 2010 I was in Helmand province Afghanistan with 3rd Battalion 1st Marines. When we first arrived in Helmand province there were no Afghan soldiers, it was just Marines, and the Taliban controlled the entire area as far as you could see. The people were unkind and wouldn't even give us a second glance, and we were under constant attack. After many months of patrolling, meeting with local elders, building schools and even escorting the kids to school everyday the fighting became less and less frequent and more Afghan soldiers appeared. In around September of 2010 the Afghan soldiers made their presence in our area of operations in Helmand province and we were training them to take over.
                 At the end of the article Major Lujan makes the argument that we should "be smarter about the way we use our tapering resources to empower those Afghans willing to lead and serve." This I also agree with. Rather than just have a mass exodus of troops we should be willing to train and educate the Afghan people so that when we do leave they have a fighting chance of making their country into a civilized place.