If we are not in it to win it, then pull out
There are only two ways to fight a war. Either we put the full resources of the country behind the war effort with the explicit goal of total victory in the shortest time, or we don't fight it at all. It is immoral to fight a war any other way. It is morally wrong to ask young men and women to put their lives at risk knowing full well that if we had provided more resources and manpower, many of the casualties could have been avoided.
It might seem that Obama is quickly making doves out of hawks, and one could be excused from thinking that conservatives are simply opposing Obama for opposition's sake, but a simple thought experiment (since it doesn't seem likely to happen in real life) will dispel that: imagine Obama approved his general's request for 40,000 troops—or, heck, suppose he doubled it and approved for 80,000 troop increase. Can you imagine a single conservative who would oppose that?
We just want our president to stop dithering. We should either fight to win, or, especially since we have already achieved important milestones, stop putting our men in danger. Anything else is a disservice to our troops:
Mr. President, it is time to bring our troops home.
If our mission in Afghanistan is simply to protect the populace and build the nation, then I believe the time has come to bring our troops home.
We have successfully rooted out Al-Qaeda from Afghanistan. Fewer than 100 Al-Qaeda operatives are operating in Afghanistan according to Retired General James L. Jones’ assessment of the situation. “I don’t foresee the return of the Taliban,” he said in an October 4 Associated Press report. Jones, who is President Obama’s National Security Advisor, continued: “Afghanistan is not in imminent danger of falling. The al Qaeda presence is very diminished. The maximum estimate is less than 100 operating in the country, no bases, no ability to launch attacks on either us or our allies.”
Mr. President, we all recognize that we will still have to fight Al-Qaeda around the globe. So let’s bring home the tens of thousands who have fought so valiantly to protect America.
Let’s instead use the best human and electronic surveillance available to allow our special forces to target and kill those who actually threaten us.
One can make an argument for nation building. A strong, free democracy doesn't make a good training ground for terrorists and jihadists. But, we can make that argument only as long as we are committed to success, in the shortest amount of time possible—by commitment of whatever resources and manpower necessary that this nation can provide.
If we are not committed to success, then the single argument for nation building collapses. As it was once said, "Do or do not. There is no 'try'."
Update: This is comforting. By the general's own admission, the ball's in his court, and frankly, I have far more confidence in the men of our military than its current commander in chief, so it's very comforting to know that the future of this war is in the military's hand.