There is little I can say to console the psychic cost of war, especially one that was as bloody and useless as Afghanistan. I think about the souls lost to battle, and the deep wounds the American military has left on Afghani people. Their resilience is a testament to their cultural beauty. Even in the grimmest of circumstances, they’ve survived bloody regimes. My heart is extended to the families broken by two decades of conflict. I pray that they recover, and that everyone may start anew. 

The Biden administration, for once, did the right thing. They got the hell out of there. We can toy with foreign policy debates and strategic decision-making, but American activity in the region was not sustainable. From astronomical civilian casualties to the blind-eyes taken towards child sex slavery, our country has committed a grave sin. 

Our approach to the Middle East is simple. We see a natural resource, or an opportunity to crank up the American war machine, and we go for it. The Clintons and Bushes are two sides of the same war hawk coin. We send our young to fight under the allure of American pride. As the 20th anniversary of 9/11 passes, it’s shocking to think how many of our fellow citizens were thrown into the evil carnage of war. No one deserves to be usurped by propaganda and sent off to die in a distant conflict that seemed so fruitless we used the phrase “forever war” to describe it. 

Critics of the Biden administration say the pullout could’ve been earlier or better executed. Those are certain possibilities that I do consider, but I ask, what is to be made of more fighting? If 20 years wasn’t enough to prop up a secular democracy, could we do it at all? 

Nation building is not good. We cannot force change on people who want nothing to do with us.