In Response to Hoh

We want to embrace the resignation letter of Matthew Hoh because it supports what many in the American public currently believe about Afghanistan.

Where we err in taking the word of Mr. Hoh and his take on Afghanistan is that this is one person’s opinion. Simply because someone works in a country does not mean that they are the expert on that country.

Especially not in a place like Afghanistan, where the tribal nature of this cobbled together country complicates the issues of democracy, stabilization, and economic development on a scale that I already find mind-boggling.

Incidentally, Hoh identifies himself as a Foreign Service Officer. This implies a standing in the Department of State Foreign Service as an appointed officer with that service. He was/is not. His assignment was what is commonly known as a 3161, or 1-year temporary assignment working for the State Department in a particular area. 3161’s are individuals hired to supplement a short-term deficiency in State Department personnel. They serve a vital role in that capacity, but they are not by any means actual vested members of the Foreign Service.

Let me say this: I personally agree with his assessment of Afghanistan. This place is a mess. No one who works here will tell you otherwise. There are glimmers of hope here, one of which, incidentally, was the attack on the UN guesthouse by the Taliban.

Such an attack indicates one thing: the Taliban see these elections as a legitimate threat to their hold on this country, and as such feel the need to attack those who are working to support those elections with deadly force. If you are not a significant threat, they’ll leave you alone.

However, on the whole, a country without a solid infrastructure such as Afghanistan is a complicated, messy place in which to work. No one would deny that.

Afghanistan is the latest in a series of “rock and a hard place” environments the United States has found itself in over the years. If one is going to be a beacon for democracy and freedom, and carry that message to the world as a whole, then one is going to find oneself in difficult places faced with extremely difficult challenges.

Afghanistan is not a war in the sense that if we take Hill A, then we can declare victory.

Afghanistan is a war where we convince Village A that maybe this government thing is OK, and they then convince Village B.

That, reader, takes some time. A lot of time. Find a provincial map of Afghanistan and look at all the little village names. And those are just the ones mentioned on the map. Is it worth it? I hope so. Will we ever win? Maybe. Was he right to leave? Absolutely. Should we all do the same? Probably not. How’s THAT for a definite maybe?