AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |
Back to Blog
Current us armed conflicts11/16/2023 ![]() Most Americans just don’t know about them, or worse, want to ignore what they mean for America’s best stories about itself and its role in the world. In fact, there are several other candidates for America’s longest war besides Afghanistan-or Vietnam, for that matter. This, critics charge, is not only long but new: a state of constant, and seemingly endless “forever war,” that is a departure both from the principles of the founders and the isolationist tradition of the 19th and early 20th centuries.Īs a military historian, I tend to wrinkle my brow when I hear claims like this, because neither one of them stands up well under scrutiny. The war in Afghanistan has been ongoing since October 7th, 2001-almost nineteen years-making it roughly twice as long as the nation’s previous longest war, Vietnam. The first question seems like one of simple arithmetic. But is that depressing label really accurate? If so, by what measures? If not, do terms like “endless” or “forever” wars have any explanatory value, or should they be dismissed as mere hyperbole? ![]() Since the United States and the Afghan Taliban signed a tentative agreement in February 2020, there has been renewed speculation that the United States may finally be on a path to ending what some have called the longest war in American history.
0 Comments
Read More
Leave a Reply. |