Obama's Delusional March into War, When America Fights For its Life at Home

We have to say that we are greatly dismayed by the President's decision to escalate troop presence in Afghanistan. At a time when our economy is crumbling and millions of people are facing joblessness, poverty and hunger, this decision to divert precious resources (money) away from the domestic economy into funding more senseless wars (that we cannot afford) is plain delusional. Barack Obama from whom the country and the world had great expectations, has let us all down. Below is an examination of some of the elements from his speech last night.

Just days after 9/11, Congress authorized the use of force against al Qaeda and those who harbored them -- an authorization that continues to this day.

Notice the broad language defining the enemy as more than just Al Qaeda. According to the President we are no longer focusing on just Al Qaeda but we have now broadened the war to those who harbored them i.e. the countless local warlords that form the Taliban. And the Taliban in turn is harbored by elements in Pakistan, so are we to move there next? Is there any end to this mindless pursuit in sight? America has countless enemies, is it feasible to kill them all? Which country will we chase after Pakistan? Sudan? Is it not more sensible to instead have a smaller counter-insurgency task force in combination with beefed up border protection to prevent terrorists from entering the country? Has our response not been greatly disproportionate in comparison to the threat?

In Afghanistan, we and our allies prevented the Taliban from stopping a presidential election, and -- although it was marred by fraud -- that election produced a government that is consistent with Afghanistan's laws and constitution.

After making a huge ruckus around the legitimacy of the Iranian Presidential elections, this meek acceptance of Hamid Karzai as the legitimate leader of Afghanistan, seriously damages the credibility of U.S. foreign policy. What is even more outrageous is the fact that our troops will be laying down their life to preserve an ill-legitimate government in power.

As president, I refuse to set goals that go beyond our responsibility, our means, our or interests. And I must weigh all of the challenges that our nation faces. I don't have the luxury of committing to just one.

Actually Mr. President you just committed us to a war that is well beyond our means. And as President of the United States, is it not your duty to commit to fighting just wars like those on joblessness, hunger and poverty back home. Would America not be better off diverting trillions of dollars to fight these wars?

Indeed, I am mindful of the words of President Eisenhower, who -- in discussing our national security -- said, "Each proposal must be weighed in the light of a broader consideration: the need to maintain balance in and among national programs."

Where is this balance that you speak off? As Rep. Dennis Kucinich, points out in an interview with Truthdig America has spent $13 trillion bailing out Wall Street, and $1 trillion on the war in Iraq and Afghanistan with projections of a final cost approaching $3 trillion. But how much have we spent on helping out main street? America has money to fund Wall Street and countless wars, but it has no money to help out its people. And he elaborates further in a recent email "An escalation of the war in Afghanistan at a time of such economic dislocation and hardship raises questions about America’s priorities and whether or not we are losing our way as we attempt to stride aside the globe as some Colossus."

In the wake of an economic crisis, too many of our friends and neighbors are out of work and struggle to pay the bills, and too many Americans are worried about the future facing our children. Meanwhile, competition within the global economy has grown more fierce. So we can't simply afford to ignore the price of these wars.

And yet you do Mr. President.

Our prosperity provides a foundation for our power. It pays for our military. It underwrites our diplomacy. It taps the potential of our people, and allows investment in new industry. And it will allow us to compete in this century as successfully as we did in the last. That is why our troop commitment in Afghanistan cannot be open-ended -- because the nation that I am most interested in building is our own.

Just an f.y.i. Mr. President we are NO LONGER prosperous. As a matter of fact we are dead broke. We cannot even garner enough revenue to bridge the deficit, let alone payoff some of the $12 trillion of national debt. Our prosperity is not paying for our military, Bernanke's printing press is. And if his dollar debasement strategy continues at the same rate, we will soon be unable to pay any bills, let alone the military's.

We will have to be nimble and precise in our use of military power. Where al Qaeda and its allies attempt to establish a foothold -- whether in Somalia or Yemen or elsewhere -- they must be confronted by growing pressure and strong partnerships.

So after wrapping up Afghanistan you will move to Somali...Yemen...the chase never ends. American military adventurism is an endless process. And yet you promise us otherwise.

For unlike the great powers of old, we have not sought world domination.

So why do we have military presence in over a 100 countries?

As Americans -- can still come together behind a common purpose. For our values are not simply words written into parchment -- they are a creed that calls us together, and that has carried us through the darkest of storms as one nation, as one people..

Even Shakespeare would have a tough time mustering a more eloquent prose.