TALIBAN COUNTERS MARINES - AT 6:22 P.M. ET:  It seems to be a habit, but we as a nation continually forget the war in Afghanistan.  There is actually nothing new in this.  Of the wars the United States fought in the last 70 years, only World War II gripped public attention every day, in part because the The New York Times, leading the rest of the press, had a regular box for "War News" on every front page.  Also, radio broadcasters had a seriousness during that war that has since faded.

One great myth is that Vietnam was "our national nightmare," a term also applied at the time to Watergate.  In fact, most Americans showed a remarkable indifference to Vietnam.  It was someone else's war, fought either by volunteers, professionals, or draftees from groups many Americans didn't know.  The "nightmare" part existed mainly in the minds of "anti-war" activists, who had a strange propensity for being "anti-war" only about wars America had a chance to win.

Now, Afghanistan.  There is a major push going on there, and our casualties are increasing.  The Washington Post reports how difficult it is:

CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan -- Taliban fighters who evaded a major Marine Corps thrust into insurgent-held towns along the Helmand River valley this month are now probing Marine positions and using roadside bombs to impede U.S. troop movements, according to senior Marine officers.

Several hundred Taliban had been occupying the populated agricultural lands, known as the “green zone,” where the Marines are now setting up positions. Many of the Taliban fighters laid low during the offensive, the officers said.

In recent days, however, insurgents throughout the area have reemerged to mount fresh attacks, said Col. George S. Amland, deputy commander of the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade, which has some 4,000 troops operating in central and southern Helmand.

COMMENT:  Even President Obama says that this will be a long haul.  But are Americans ready for that?  When the Obamans play down the war on terror, even banning the term, it makes it difficult to convince our people of the importance of Afghanistan. 

And there are serious issues involving our strategy and planning.  See our post, "Report from the Real War," yesterday at 9:26 a.m.

With Iraq at least tentatively won, we must be concerned about Afghanistan, our first military thrust after the 9-11 attacks and still, almost eight years later, far from secure.  The Post report reminds us that there's real combat going on.  Consider:

Overall, officers say they expect a drawn-out campaign against the Taliban in the Helmand River valley, with Marine deployments expected to continue here for years.

“We know the Taliban are going to come back and challenge us and lay IEDs, terrorize the population and try to make us cause civilian casualties,” said Mellinger. “They’ll do all these things for the battle of influence, and we have to continue to convince the population that we are here to help.”

Very tough going, and very important,.

July 15, 2009