"Come Home, America" Watch, Day 26.75

Steve Metz says that since the U.S. will never spend what's necessary to build up nations that nurture terrorism, counter-terrorism may be the only policy left, especially in Afghanistan:

If we are unwilling to pay the price for a serious civilian capability--and admit that foisting the job of development and political assistance on the military is a bad idea--the only option is to alter our basic strategy. We could find a way to thwart Al Qaeda and other terrorists without trying to re-engineer weak states. We could, in other words, get out of the counterinsurgency and stabilization business. This is not an attractive option and entails many risks. But it does reflect reality. Ultimately, it may be better than a strategy based on a capability that exists only in our minds.