1,2,3,What Are We Fighting For?

I was scanning the Drudge Report headlines and I ran into this story: "Morale dips for American marines in Afghanistan". When I read it, I couldn't help thinking about the de facto theme song of Woodstock, sung by Country Joe and the Fish, that went like this:

And its one, two, three, what are we fighting for?
Don't ask me I don't give a damn, next stop is Vietnam.
And its five, six, seven, open up the pearly gates
Ain't no time to wonder why, whoopee we're all gonna die.

The only difference between then and now is that you can swap the word Vietnam with Afghanistan.

It seems like the whole objective of the Afghanistan war has changed since Obama took office. Even the national polls are reflecting a dissatisfaction with this war. Almost overnight, it is as if we went from wanting to be a victor to just wanting to get the hell out. And, I'm not sure why.

I realize that the Taliban have been winning some victories and our troops have sustained casualties. But, wars are like that. Sometimes it can look the darkest before things turnaround. Just look at Iraq.

We lost Vietnam because of a lack of commitment. Now, the same seems to be happening in Afghanistan. But, what is really strange is that Iraq and Afghanistan have literally swapped roles. Just two years ago, Iraq was looking like a quagmire and it was Afghanistan that seemed more under control. Now, I am believing, more and more, that we will leave Afghanistan in much the same way we left Vietnam. And, that's very sad.