A Disaster for the Women of Afghanistan

I have often shared stories about how our troops being in either Iraq or Afghanistan has changed the lives of women and girls for the better. Anybody who reads anything at all written by our boots on the ground MUST know of the new schools for girls; girls who attend those schools despite repeated attacks and intimidation by the thugs. I have also written about the women in Afghanistan who - albeit on a very small scale - are participating in the political process. At Blackfive, Grim has a piece up focusing on a letter from an Afghan woman that appeared in The Washington Post yesterday.

We all know that BO is waffling and wringing his hands, despite advice from his Generals who see the difference our troops are making on the ground. Villages emerging from under the oppressive boots of the Taliban; communities with running water, hospitals, roads. The list of accomplishments which better their lives is long. I have NO idea what it will take for BO to keep the promise the US, and the international community, made to the men, women and children of Afghanistan. I would love to see him go to Afghanistan and talk to the Afghanis who are impacted by his dithering. I would like him to see, firsthand, what is at stake as he now slithers from inaction to outright abandoning the decent families of Afghanistan. It seems that the military has been unable to impress the urgency of this mission on their C-in-C. The mealy-mouthed politicians (who also apparently know less than zero about the reality of Afghanistan as they preach "no more troops") ignore the global implications of their dangerously uninformed rhetoric.

We all know that in DC, partisanship is the name of the game they play. Meanwhile the realities of day to day living, with the tenuous buffer of coalition troops - for now, at least - are no mere rhetorical, academic game for the Afghan women. These incredibly brave women now must face the real possibly that future dreams of a life free of the historical brutality of the Taliban, will be ripped from their grasp.

From Blackfive:

A Disaster for the Women of Afghanistan

Posted By Grim

An added perspective on our debate, from an Afghan woman named Wazhma Frogh.

As an Afghan woman who for many years lived a life deprived of the most basic human rights, I find unbearable the thought of what will happen to the women of my country if it once again falls under the control of the insurgents and militants who now threaten it.

In 2001, when the war in Afghanistan began, the liberation of Afghan women was one of the most important justifications for military intervention. Has the world now changed its mind about Afghan women? Is it ready to let them once again be killed and tortured by militants? Does the world no longer believe in the principles it supported in 2001?...[emphasis mine]

What Wazhma Frogh cries from her heart, SHOULD rip out the heart of every decent westerner. It should. We all know that those hypocritical, lying politicians (of all stripes) really don't give a damn about all the Wazhma's of Afghanistan. These weasals choose to ignore the terrible implications - both within Afghanistan and globally - of walking away from the families of Aghanistan. IF the politicians in DC did give even a scintilla of a damn, there would not be any need for debate, the moral choice is so blatantly obvious.

Go now and read the excerpt of Wazhma's letter here, at Blackfive. Be sure to read the ongoing debate in the comments, too. Then, when you are done weeping for her, and for us, get angry. Get really angry and demand accountability, and action, NOW, from the politicians.

As I read somewhere long ago: Tears, without action are wasted. We know the politicians have shed no tears for the plight of the Afghan people. Let's at least demand they act before it is too late for all of us.