Deconstructing Afghanistan: How Does America's Past Inform Afghanistan's Future? Taliban Political Reconciliation, Historical Comparison with American Civil War, Security and Economic Factors

Nonfiction, History, Military, Aviation
Cover of the book Deconstructing Afghanistan: How Does America's Past Inform Afghanistan's Future? Taliban Political Reconciliation, Historical Comparison with American Civil War, Security and Economic Factors by Progressive Management, Progressive Management
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Progressive Management ISBN: 9781370936014
Publisher: Progressive Management Publication: September 9, 2016
Imprint: Smashwords Edition Language: English
Author: Progressive Management
ISBN: 9781370936014
Publisher: Progressive Management
Publication: September 9, 2016
Imprint: Smashwords Edition
Language: English

This excellent report, professionally converted for accurate flowing-text e-book format reproduction, suggests a path for Afghanistan's post-2014 future based on the post-Civil War experience of the US South. A comparative history of both societies reveals the common presence of three foundational traits: highly differentiated class structures, ethnically and economically diverse societal mosaics, and a belief in peripheral and societal autonomy. I assess the prospects for either renewed civil war or stable peace in Afghanistan after US and coalition military forces complete their withdrawal. The study concludes that Afghanistan's fate rests with the Afghan people and not the international community, despite the weight of effort expended by the US and coalition nations since October 2001.

Furthermore, regardless of the near universal assumption by pundits, politicians, and academics, this comparison with the South after April 1865 suggests that a significant possibility exists for political reconciliation with Taliban leaders, sustained peace, and stable, albeit slow, economic growth. Secondary findings suggest that Afghanistan's historical existence as a rentier state will persist at least through 2025; social modernization efforts imposed by external influence, including gender equality, are likely to regress in future years; and the vast economic disparities resident in Afghan society will persist indefinitely.

The author uses analogy to examine the US intervention in the South Asian nation. Analogy is thought's constant handmaiden. It shapes decisions at every turn, individually and collectively, from crossing the street to going to war. Some analogies have attained legendary status in national security decision making: Western acquiescence to Adolf Hitler's demands in Czechoslovakia instructs policy makers to engage early in budding international disputes, and American experience in Vietnam has taught three generations of military officers to conduct military campaigns aggressively. Not all smaller problems become larger ones, however, and not all aggressive combat succeeds, so analogy must be used carefully for it to enrich rather than impoverish decision making. The particular weight analogy plays in decision making is a function of numerous variables, including the complexity of the problem, perceived similarities between past condition and present circumstance, the proximity of past events to the present, and the stakes involved in the decision—and policy makers are wise to weigh each as they look to the past to shape the present and chart the future.

In the present work, Greene finds wanting the common analogies, particularly the Vietnam analogy, used to inform debate on the United States' role in Afghanistan. Instead, he establishes a benchmark that both better fits and more accurately informs: the American experience following the Civil War from 1865 to 1877, known as the Reconstruction Era. For 12 years, former Union states cajoled, threatened, and sweet-talked former Confederate states as together they rebuilt societies torn by war, a process marked by both success and failure. Building upon similarity between nineteenth-century Union and twenty-first-century American circumstances, as well as commonalities between Confederate and Afghani conditions, Greene argues the future of American intervention in Afghanistan is fraught with peril but not doomed to failure. He concludes that leaders in both Washington and Kabul must understand the limits of remaking society from afar and calibrate international ambitions with Afghan political topography because moderate objectives stand a far better chance of success than does transformative policy.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

This excellent report, professionally converted for accurate flowing-text e-book format reproduction, suggests a path for Afghanistan's post-2014 future based on the post-Civil War experience of the US South. A comparative history of both societies reveals the common presence of three foundational traits: highly differentiated class structures, ethnically and economically diverse societal mosaics, and a belief in peripheral and societal autonomy. I assess the prospects for either renewed civil war or stable peace in Afghanistan after US and coalition military forces complete their withdrawal. The study concludes that Afghanistan's fate rests with the Afghan people and not the international community, despite the weight of effort expended by the US and coalition nations since October 2001.

Furthermore, regardless of the near universal assumption by pundits, politicians, and academics, this comparison with the South after April 1865 suggests that a significant possibility exists for political reconciliation with Taliban leaders, sustained peace, and stable, albeit slow, economic growth. Secondary findings suggest that Afghanistan's historical existence as a rentier state will persist at least through 2025; social modernization efforts imposed by external influence, including gender equality, are likely to regress in future years; and the vast economic disparities resident in Afghan society will persist indefinitely.

The author uses analogy to examine the US intervention in the South Asian nation. Analogy is thought's constant handmaiden. It shapes decisions at every turn, individually and collectively, from crossing the street to going to war. Some analogies have attained legendary status in national security decision making: Western acquiescence to Adolf Hitler's demands in Czechoslovakia instructs policy makers to engage early in budding international disputes, and American experience in Vietnam has taught three generations of military officers to conduct military campaigns aggressively. Not all smaller problems become larger ones, however, and not all aggressive combat succeeds, so analogy must be used carefully for it to enrich rather than impoverish decision making. The particular weight analogy plays in decision making is a function of numerous variables, including the complexity of the problem, perceived similarities between past condition and present circumstance, the proximity of past events to the present, and the stakes involved in the decision—and policy makers are wise to weigh each as they look to the past to shape the present and chart the future.

In the present work, Greene finds wanting the common analogies, particularly the Vietnam analogy, used to inform debate on the United States' role in Afghanistan. Instead, he establishes a benchmark that both better fits and more accurately informs: the American experience following the Civil War from 1865 to 1877, known as the Reconstruction Era. For 12 years, former Union states cajoled, threatened, and sweet-talked former Confederate states as together they rebuilt societies torn by war, a process marked by both success and failure. Building upon similarity between nineteenth-century Union and twenty-first-century American circumstances, as well as commonalities between Confederate and Afghani conditions, Greene argues the future of American intervention in Afghanistan is fraught with peril but not doomed to failure. He concludes that leaders in both Washington and Kabul must understand the limits of remaking society from afar and calibrate international ambitions with Afghan political topography because moderate objectives stand a far better chance of success than does transformative policy.

More books from Progressive Management

Cover of the book 21st Century U.S. Military Manuals: North Korea Country Handbook - DPRK Political and Economic Overview, Transportation, Geography, Climate and Weather, Military Forces and Doctrine by Progressive Management
Cover of the book Essential Guide to Lt. General Herbert (H.R.) McMaster, National Security Advisor: Thinking and War Scholarship, Moral and Ethical Soldiers, War on Terrorism, Paper on Future Wars and Technology by Progressive Management
Cover of the book 21st Century U.S. Military Manuals: Multiservice Procedures for Aviation Urban Operations (FM 3-06.1) Fixed and Rotary Wing Aviation (Value-Added Professional Format Series) by Progressive Management
Cover of the book National Defense Intelligence College Paper: Finding Leaders - Preparing the Intelligence Community for Succession Management - NSA, 9/11 Commission, CIA, NRO, DNI, Agency Culture by Progressive Management
Cover of the book 21st Century Peacekeeping and Stability Operations Institute (PKSOI) Papers - Lessons Learned from U.S. Government Law Enforcement in International Operations - Panama, Colombia, Kosovo by Progressive Management
Cover of the book 21st Century NBC Reference Series: Explosives Safety Manual - Operational Safety, Remote Operations, Storms and Static Electricity, Explosive Dust, High Explosives by Progressive Management
Cover of the book FEMA U.S. Fire Administration The Changing Face of the Fire Service: A Handbook on Women in Firefighting - Recruitment, Reproductive Issues, Sexual Harassment, Protective Clothing by Progressive Management
Cover of the book Velocity: Speed with Direction - The Professional Career of General Jerome F. O'Malley - Controversy about North Vietnam Bombing Authorization and President Nixon, the Lavelle Raids of the Vietnam War by Progressive Management
Cover of the book Fair Share or Freeride: Burden Sharing in Post-Cold War NATO – Analysis Showing that Most Members Contribute Effectively to Funding and Military Operations, Study of Bosnia, Kosovo, and Afghanistan by Progressive Management
Cover of the book Women Marines in World War I: Recruiting, Enrollment, Housing, Uniforms, Pay, Assignments to Duty, Drill and Parades, Discipline, Social, Benefits, After the War by Progressive Management
Cover of the book The National Security Mission of the U.S. Border Patrol: A Question of Collective Bargaining Exemption - Union Rights for Federal Workforce, The Intelligence Process by Progressive Management
Cover of the book 21st Century U.S. Military Manuals: The United States Army Functional Concept for Mission Command 2016-2028 - TRADOC 525-3-3 - Intertheater and Intratheater Maneuver (Professional Format Series) by Progressive Management
Cover of the book Djibouti in Perspective: Orientation Guide and Cultural Orientation: Geography, History, Economy, Religion, Customs, Ali Sabieh, Dikhil, Tadjoura, Obock, French Somaliland, Ismail Omar Guelleh Era by Progressive Management
Cover of the book Navy Cold War Communication Context: Resources Associated With the Navy's Communication Program, 1946-1989 - Equipment and Facility Histories, Radio, Wireless, Vietnam, Satellite, Receivers, Radars by Progressive Management
Cover of the book 21st Century Peacekeeping and Stability Operations Institute (PKSOI) Papers - Hearts and Minds: A Strategy of Conciliation, Coercion, or Commitment? Irregular Conflicts, Iraq, Afghanistan, Vietnam by Progressive Management
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy