What is the cost of the Iraq and Afghanistan war so far and what are the California tradeoffs? As of June 30, 2009, in Iraq 4,321 Americans have died as have from 92,435 to 100,911 civilians and another 2 million civilians have been displaced. In Afghanistan, 709 Americans have died and, although accurate counts are hard to come by, as many as 9,000 Afghan civilians have been killed and another 3.7 million refugees are living in neighboring countries.

Afghan Adabi Baheer, or the Writers' Association of Afghanistan, has been a platform for Afghan poets, writers, and intellectuals to read their poems, short stories and research papers, express their views on national and international issues, and discuss contemporary literary trends since it was established in Peshawar, Pakistan, some 15 years back.

San Diego – Entertaining the troops in Afghanistan proved to be an eye-opening experience for professional volleyball players. "The Fourth of July will definitely have more meaning this year," says Matt Olson, a San Diego native and professional AVP beach volleyball player. Olson was one of four players invited by the United Service Organization, USO, to play volleyball and sign autographs for the troops stationed in Afghanistan. The Middle East Journey was an eight-day crash course in military procedures and 100- degree temperatures in the desert. "The troops were very gracious and appreciative.

Iran is not the only country holding elections this year. Afghanistan is too. The people of Afghanistan want change, just like the people of America wanted in the 2008 elections. To learn more about the people of Afghanistan please read my article in its entirety.

The United States is in the early stages of a concerted effort to salvage the war in Afghanistan. A new commander has been charged with executing a fresh strategy, the number of U.S. military personnel committed to the fight is set to nearly double, air strikes by unmanned drones have expanded in frequency and scope, the training of Afghan security forces has been accelerated, and the way has been paved for a possible peace deal with the Taliban.

Many would say that in Afghanistan, drugs equal power, but here's a suggestion that creating local "power" (by growing fuels) may be a way to shift power away from the Taliban, smugglers and drug traffikers (oh, yes, and corrupt officials, the last governor had NINE TONS of opium IN HIS OFFICE). Sharp Aquos 40" couldn't blast it's own way out of wet paper bag. Strong performances shore up "okay" story, and fine directing in Angels and Demons. But is the ending satisfying? Well, I might have picked a different one, but ....

A Republican Breakfast Club in Colorado gets briefed on conditions in Afghanistan by one who knows.

The international and Afghan forces then seized the poppy seeds, along with tar opium, processed morphine, heroin and hashish The statement said the troops had "seized the single-largest drug cache by Afghan-led forces in Afghanistan to date". Helmand, where thousands of NATO military forces helped Afghanistan troops, is the main producer of Afghan opium, which accounts for more than 90 per cent of the world's supply.

An Atheist public policy group has called upon Congress to investigate the unauthorized distribution of bibles by U.S. military troops in Afghanistan. The incident was revealed on the Al Jazeera television network, and consisted of video shot by a U.S. filmmaker. It shows military chaplains at Bagram Air Force base planning distribution of bibles printed in the native Pashto language to Muslims.

Afghanistan is a mountainous country of uneducated Muslim inhabitants that was of no great importance to the United States until 9/11. When it became obvious that the Taliban was protecting Osama bin Laden, it suddenly became very important. The Bush Administration sent a few hundred troops to help the Northern Alliance that was fighting the Taliban and succeeded in defeating them.

When US invaded Afghanistan in 2001 to tackle crisis in Middle East, it was repeating an old story that started 2300 years ago by Alexander the Great under similar circumstances.

It could be a plan to exit by 2092; it would just have to be a plan of some sort, and Secretary Gates could take up to seven months to write it.

Al-Shabab and Terrorits Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys are funneling heavy weaponry into Mogadishu via Port City of Kismayo in preparation for major assault on TGS and UN Peacekeepers from African Union. While the world is focusing on Piracy. Eritrean President Issayas Afewarki is supplying arms and weapons to terrorists in Somalia to destroy and overpower Sheikh Sharif Ahmed Government.

The United Nations opened its 20th office in the northern Sar-i-Pul province of Afghanistan today, continuing the world body's drive to promote development across the strife-torn nation. "I consider this opening to be especially important, because it reflects one of our most important objectives to draw more attention and resources to the poorest provinces," Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's Special Representative Kai Eide said at a ceremony marking the event. Mr. Eide, who heads the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), said that the poor and the stable provinces in the Central and Northern parts of the country cannot continue to be neglected.

Now we learn that the Canadian general who leads the coalition´s air war in Afghanistan, Major-General Duff Sullivan, told a reporter that the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Central Command want to "get Canadian F-18s into the game over here."

While the chattering classes deplore increasing partisan rancor in Washington and around the nation, great strides are being made by political leaders of both parties on issues of great significance to our nation — and the international community. On a recent fact-finding trip to Afghanistan, Pakistan, Turkey and Israel, I had the opportunity to work with colleagues — both Democrats and Republicans, from the House and Senate — to advance a united front for critical U.S. foreign policy objectives. During the recent Congressional District Work period, I joined two Republican senators and two Democrats from the House on a weeklong bicameral, bipartisan congressional delegation ("co-del") visit. One of the objectives of our mission was to show foreign leaders the United States is indeed united in support of President Barack Obama's new regional strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan that includes a pledge to deploy more troops to defeat al-Qaida militants, the Taliban, and their allies, but also includes a greater emphasis on regional diplomacy and economic development. This codel was my first visit to the region since Obama's election.

My personal story is even more directly tied to Senator Kerry.

One member of Congress stood alone 7.5 years ago against the original authorization to attack Afghanistan. And one member of Congress, a different one, stood alone last week against funding a massive escalation of that war.

The United States and its allies are in danger of losing the war in Afghanistan. The level of violence has risen steadily over the past seven years, the Taliban are in control of large portions of the countryside, insurgent elements operate with near impunity from safe havens in Pakistan, the Karzai government is corrupt and ineffective, and many NATO member states are proving to be more of a hindrance than a help due to national caveats that restrict the types of operations their troops can participate in and declining public support that prevents the dispatch of additional combat forces to fight Taliban and al Qaeda militants.

The United States of America along with NATO is involved in Afghanistan. Now more forces are going to be sent to Afghanistan. What will be the result? What does the United States of America gain by fighting in Afghanistan?

LAHORE: Seven years after the Taliban government´s ouster by the Bush Administration, Afghanistan is far from becoming a stable and secure country. Karzai government has failed to bring about stability in the country and a democratic polity remains a distant dream.

"As President, my greatest responsibility is to protect the American people…We are in Afghanistan to confront a common enemy that threatens the United States, our friends and allies, and the people of Afghanistan and Pakistan who have suffered the most at the hands of violent extremists. So I want the American people to understand that we have a clear and focused goal: to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat al Qaeda in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and to prevent their return to either country in the future…To achieve our goals, we need a stronger, smarter and comprehensive strategy." --President Barack Obama March 27, 2009 An Attainable Objective On March 27, 2009, the President announced a comprehensive, new strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan that is the culmination of a careful 60-day, interagency strategic review.

Both the American President and his vice said that NATO forces are not winning the war in Afghanistan, but added that they are not losing the war. In military terms this means that NATO forces are facing an attrition war while losing the initiative.

You don't have to be a West Point graduate to know that the US is stuck in an unwinnable and untenable situation in Afghanistan. Unfortunately, our commander-in-chief doesn't want to accept this truth, and desperate to do something (anything) Obama announced that he's sending thousands more US forces into Afghanistan.

One of the program's greatest successes has been the increase in the number of girls attending school. In 2007, more than 23,000 girls were attending schools participating in World Vision Afghanistan's Food for Education program - the highest number of girls attending school in Badghis and Ghor in the past 20 years.

info@macedonian.com.au Macedonian Forums

Help us raise the critical questions around the costs of war, troops, terrorism, women's rights, and Pakistan by contributing to this filmmaking process.

When US envoy to Afghanistan, Richard Holbrooke met with Afghanistan´s ´democratically´ installed President Hamid Karzai in Kabul on February 14, he may have just learned of the historic significance of the following day. February 15 commemorates the end of the bloody Russian campaign against Afghanistan (August 1978-February 1989).

Before Afghanistan escalates any further, I believe Congress must inform the public and ask critical questions.

A recently released report (PDF) by Charles M. Johnson Jr., International Affairs and Trade Director of the Government Accountability Office (GAO) highlights the need to address serious accountability concerns about weapons provided to Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) -- the Afghan National Army and the Afghan National Police -- due to the risk of loss and theft of weapons which is significant given the unstable security conditions in Afghanistan. More than a third of U.S. procured armaments for Afghani use are unaccounted for.

The United States and its allies are in danger of losing the war in Afghanistan. A resurgent Taliban is in control of large parts of the country, the central government in Kabul is corrupt and incapable of exerting its authority beyond the capital, a flourishing drug trade is financing criminals, war lords, and terrorists, violence is spiraling out of control, and members of the U.S.-led coalition are growing weary of a stability operation-turned-full-fledged war that is eroding public opinion among the populations of Afghanistan, Europe, and the United States.

Warsaw, Poland - TS2 Satellite Technologies' network in Iraq and Afghanistan announced today it has over 15 thousand users of local broadband satellite connections. These high-speed internet services use US Army soldiers stationed in the Middle East and Southeast Asia. "We were among the first Internet Service Providers in the territory of Iraq and Afghanistan and as such we have enjoyed a successful cooperation with the US Department of Defense, DOD contractors and individual soldiers from several years" - says Marcin Frackiewicz, CEO of the TS2 Satellite Technologies. TS2 Satellite Technologies http://www.ts2.pl offer two-way high-speed internet access with no phone lines, no cable, no dial-up modem.

President-elect Obama should drop his plans to escalate the war in Afghanistan, a country that never attacked America, out of pity for a helpless civilian population that will only suffer increasing misery from an expanded fight against the Taliban and its allies. The U.S. would really do better to send in the Peace Corps instead. Recall military intervention was used to capture Panamanian military dictator Manuel Noriega for a drug charge in December 20, 1989.

Will Afghanistan become Obama´s "Vietnam", or "Iraq", or worse?

Nationwide Tour to Collect Care Packages for Troops Serving Overseas this Holiday Season. Sacramento, CA – Move America Forward, the nation´s largest pro-troop grassroots organization, is conducting a nationwide tour to support sending care packages to the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Saudi Arabia has confirmed it hosted talks between Afghan officials and members of the Taliban last month in Mecca. Talks took place after an iftar, the meal which marks the end of a fast day during the month of Ramadan. Talks took place at the request of Afghan President Hamid Karazai and also included Pakistani officials such as former Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif, who leads the largest opposition bloc in the Pakistani parliament.

By Con George-Kotzabasis Unlike the evolution of species from an imperfect state to a more advanced one, the evolution of war, as a result of the huge increase in the fire-power of armaments and lethal military techniques, in reverse is a development for the worst. Throughout history the lessons of military confrontations have pellucidly shown that when a state decides to don the panoply of war against irreconcilable and implacable enemies it´s by the worst means and methods that one can defeat such foes.

Afghanistan and the Teekell Doctrine A week or so ago it was revealed that a leaked cable from a French diplomat claimed the British Ambassador to Afghanistan had referred to the current strategy against the Taliban and al Qaeda as "doomed to fail" and had called for the installation of an "acceptable dictator" as the best solution. The news reports surrounding Sir Sherard Cowper-Coles´ comments brought back memories of a conversation I had with a colleague over a few 12-year old scotches and some fine cigars.

The United States is asking its allies in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to cough up more military forces for the war in Afghanistan. U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates just finished making the rounds at a two-day conference of NATO defense ministers in Budapest, Hungary, in an effort to win more resources for what is once again considered the central front in the global war on terrorism.

Gunmen shot dead Capt. Malalai Kakar, the first female to attend and graduate from the Qandahar Police Academy.

The poppy trade that fuels terrorists and insurgents in Afghanistan is a problem that must be addressed but doesn't have a military solution, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said during a teleconference for Internet journalists and bloggers. Speaking at a dinner hosted by the Pacific Council on International Policy, Navy Adm.

ETHICS -- HISTORIANS CALL ON CONGRESS TO STOP BUSH/CHENEY FROM DESTROYING DOCUMENTS:

As reported last year in the Laguna Journal, the drugs raised in Afghanistan finds its way via smuggling routes into markets in both Europe and the United States where they are sold. In turn millions of dollars and Eros are used to fund terrorist and their terror, not only in Afghanistan but around the world. Most of these same terrorist drug organizations that fuel the terror network also help to fund the current Taliban attacks in Afghanistan and Pakistan

Campaign promises by both Barack Obama and John McCain include sending more troops to Afghanistan. Obama would provide "at least two additional combat brigades [roughly 10,000 troops] to support our effort in Afghanistan." McCain, not to be outdone, states: "Our commanders on the ground in Afghanistan say that they need at least three additional brigades ...

In Afghanistan there has been a dramatic increase in violence in last few months. Western troop casualties are climbing; the last two months exceeded the monthly death toll in Iraq.

"FEMA "asked a federal judge yesterday for immunity from lawsuits"

According to Democrats, Afghanistan is the "good war" and Iraq is the "bad war".

A mere comparison of the criminal Amhara and Tigray thugs who impersonate the racist Abyssinian state´s ´army´ with the Afghanistan Taliban lunatics makes the latter look pale vis-à-vis the former. The Taliban ruled Afghanistan and imposed their fallacious and extremist interpretation of Islam; similarly, the Amhara and Tigray Monophysitic Abyssinian terrorists imposed a racist state dogma which is founded on a vicious historical forgery and incorporates venomous anti-Somali odium, anti-Kushitic discrimination and grave contempt, and last but not least, ulcerous anti-Islamic perfidy.

My son is off to war.

Over the past few months, several factors have contributed to what appears to be a renewed focus by the Bush administration on the war in Afghanistan. Of course, the ongoing violence in Iraq is still center stage at the White House, in the Congress, on the campaign trail, and in the minds of American citizens.