With all the different issues in today?s society surrounding the War in Afghanistan, it is usually a hot topic of debate. It has its good points, and of course, its bad points. Mostly depending on which perspective you look at it from. Sometimes these problems can be hard to pick out and analyse, but need to be addressed eventually. I will be looking at some of the Political and Economic factors of the war, how it has left an impact on society in both ways, good and bad.
In the UK alone, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have cost the British taxpayers over £20 billion. Not including soldier?s salaries or the £35 billion annual defence budget. As you can imagine, this has had some disastrous effects on the British Economy. Just the War in Afghanistan alone has cost £11.1 billion up to the present day. With lots of money being constantly poured into the War, it?s no wonder the UK?s economy has had a recent downfall, and is struggling, but slowly recovering. With the UK?s national debt currently standing at over £950 billion, and figures currently showing the debt rising to approximately £1.1 trillion by 2011, it makes you wonder: Is the War is really worth fighting for? Of course there is also a second side to every story, the pro?s of halting the War in Afghanistan are, and always will be unknown so long as the war continues. The overall consequences might not be worth stopping for. With the current terrorist organisation, Al-Qaeda, being an ever growing force, letting them continue to grow without any opposing force could burden us with far worse attacks and destruction that is happening at this present time, which could drive the British economy into an even deeper recession. The phrase ?Every action has consequences? looms over the people who have to make the decisions, and with all the pressure to make the right one, it makes their decision ever harder than it already is.
Obviously, the biggest and worst problems with the War in Afghanistan and indeed all wars in the history of mankind, is the saddening deaths of Allied soldiers, and the effects it brings to their families and friends. As of the 21 August 2010, the death count of British soldiers who were serving in Afghanistan is 332, whilst worldwide casualties currently add up to 2095 deaths. Obviously these soldiers are irreplaceable, and nothing can be done for them now. But could all of this been prevented right back at the source? The September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center building. Long before 9/11, the White House had been debating taking the fight to Al-Qaeda, but by the time they decided it was too late. Maybe, with the correct decisions and security measures, 9/11 could have been prevented, and 2,996 more lives could have been saved. This may not have been enough to prevent the War on Terror, we will never know. But it might have been enough to delay it, and prevent as many deaths as there have been now. As well as this, going back to my previous point about every action having consequences, who knows the future would have had in store for mankind if the attacks had been prevented in the first place. In November 2009 a British poll carried out by the BBC showed that 64% of the public thought that the War is unwinnable, whilst 63% thought that British troops should be pulled out of Afghanistan immediately. Also in June 2007, a poll taken in 47 countries showed that the majority opposed the War in Afghanistan. Although this is the majority of the public, some others would say the war is worth fighting for, with the main reason being to stop the opposing force of the Taliban from gaining control over the country of Afghanistan, an innocent country. And to keep them from becoming a force to big to handle, which would most likely cause more deaths among innocent civilians in many different countries. Troops stationed in Afghanistan have not died in vain though, as they have been doing an excellent job of protecting their respective nations from further terrorist attacks by religious extremists. If troops were to be withdrawn from Afghanistan, then these people would have a lot more freedom, and are willing to kill themselves to rid the world of all people who do not follow the teachings of their religion. They will most likely bring the war to our country, and many other countries, with many more civilian casualties certain. This is one of the reasons why the War in Afghanistan should continue.
In conclusion, there are many pro?s and con?s for the War in Afghanistan, and while I do not approve of the war itself, I consider it less risky to finish what we have already got ourselves into. This whole fiasco may have been prevented in the first place, but decisions made and paths taken have gotten us into this terrible mess we are in at this present time. If we do not continue to fight and neutralise the opposing Taliban forces, who knows what horrible consequences, far worse than what is happening now, might happen. I do not think what is happening is right, but I feel as if we have no other choice right now other than to fight Al-Qaeda to the end.
