Is President Obama Getting Enough Pressure From the Left to Get Out of Afghanistan?

[David Zephyr]

This poll is directed to those of us on the Left who are opposed to continuing the U.S. military action and presence in Afghanistan.

Are we doing enough?

Are we being vocal enough?

I don't see much visible opposition to this senseless and impossible military action.

If I'm not seeing or hearing much opposition, then President Obama isn't either.

Are we sidetracked in a health-care debate while he wrestles with what to do in Afghanistan?

Should we be doing more to stop this insanity?

What should we be doing?

[sandnsea]

1. You aren't doing as much as you would to Bush

I think Obama knows how you feel about it though, if that's your concern. The real issue I think you need to consider is, basically, truth. You should really be scowering what the generals, the ambassador, local Afghan opposition who are more than happy to talk, Afghani women, etc.; have to say. Focus on things like Karzai's brother, warlords, corrupt officials, who McChrystal really is, true issues. That's why I keep saying I wish the left would organize a strong party and become the second party and push the Republicans off the cliff with the teabaggers. I'd much rather argue policy with you guys than with them.

[David Zephyr]

5. That's exactly what I see happening, sandnsea.

We would be giving George W. Bush hell right now over this shit. But we are not.

That's why I asked the question here at what is supposed to be a liberal blog, but where it seems a great many of us collectively are soft on this because it's Obama now, not Bush.

Where are our marches against this madness as Obama makes his decision? Why is this getting a pass?

Your point goes to the heart of my question: we aren't doing as much as we would to Bush. Well stated.

[MissDeeds]

10. I agree completely

I firmly believe this cannot be 'won' - whatever that means - militarily. And your question, "Where are our marches against this madness..." is important and worth considering. If the war was wrong under Bush, is it any less wrong under Obama?

[sandnsea]

14. How to be effective advocates

when you're advocating to your friends. I think you choose battles your friends are concerned about too. You don't try to pretend Obama = Bush just because Obama doesn't equal Kucinich. Help focus the debate, don't force people to choose between the left and the Democratic President.

[grantcart]

2. Interesting that you assume that the left only has one position.

[David Zephyr]

3. Uh...that would be the Left, yes not DLC Democrats.

I think it's safe to say that the Left, from MoveOn.Org to The Nation is squarely against our continued military involvement there.

It's a very safe assumption.

[JackRiddler]

4. Yes, I'm sure 21 cruise-missile humanitarian "intellectuals" on "the left" disagree.

They're almost as numerous as the neocons, and unfortunately almost as influential.

[JackRiddler]

6. No.

It should shame all of us media-savvy, well-informed antiwar people that the biggest demonstration in DC this year, though only moderately impressive, consisted of pre-modern fantasists protesting a collection of mostly non-existent things that scare them. And most of them probably still only have AOL accounts, if that. And all we do is log on to tell each other (understandably) how ridiculous they are. Has the Internet captured the left?

[EmeraldCityGrl]

8. You are so right.

If a fraction of the ranting on the internet transferred to the streets we could change the country.

[Life Long Dem]

13. MSM spins it and people eat it.

[Echo In Light]

7. US pres admins don't give a fuck about what you or I want, period

[Individualist]

9. +1

[Life Long Dem]

11. Let the President do his job.

He said he will end this war, so let him do what we put him in office to do. War is peace. And who do you want protecting you? Is Pepsi going to protect you? Good luck.

[ecstatic]

12. No because when the Iraq surge was going on, Afghanistan wasn't even talked

about. And then this meme about Afghanistan being the "right war" began to circulate so people just kept quiet about it because the main topic was Iraq. Now that the Iraq war is coming to a close, people realize we should have been protesting both wars all along, not just Iraq.