I'm Living The Dream.

Us Forces Have Been Increased [in Afghanistan ] From Some 21,000 To About 31,000 Over The Past Two Years And A Number Of Coalition Countries Have Also Increased Their Forces, There Still Are Not Sufficient Troops.

The Question Is Always How You Get The Number Of Troops Needed. They Do Not Have To Be Coalition Forces. We Also Have To Expand The Training Program For The Afghan National Army And The National Police, In Particular. And Defense Secretary Robert Gates Has Already Announced Support For A Significant Increase In The Afghan Army.

There Are Some Ideas That Will Translate From Iraq To Afghanistan And There Are Many That Will Not. The First Lesson Of Counterinsurgency, In Fact, Is That Every Situation Is Truly Unique, Has Its Own Context, Its Own Specific Set Of Factors - And You Have To Understand That Context In Enormous Detail To Be Able To Craft A Sound And Comprehensive Approach.

The Sunni Arabs Began To Realize That They Had Made A Huge Mistake By Not Voting In The Election Of 2005 And By Not Being Part Of The New Iraq. They Had Reasons For This: They Were Effected By The Disestablishment Of The Military And By De-baathification (the Dismantling Of Saddam Hussein's Party) In Winter 2007-2007. They Increasingly Recognized That Their Future Lay In Being Part Of The Solution Rather Than A Continuing Part Of The Problem.

If You Don't Want To Have To Kill Or Capture Every Bad Guy In The Country, You Have To Reintegrate Those Who Are Willing To Be Reconciled And Become Part Of The Solution Instead Of A Continued Part Of The Problem. And Then, Above All, The Resources.