A soldier's view from the Sandbox

Start of a post by Paul at Celestial Junk:

Ask a Direct Question...

... get a direct answer.

I recently asked my son, who is serving in Afghanistan, if the scheduled 2011 pullout of Canadian Forces had a negative effect on morale.

Here's his answer as given to me via email:

... as for the 2011 pullout, to be honest, I think most soldiers are pretty indifferent. 2011 might as well be 2050 from here. Most soldiers are focused on two days, tomorrow, and the day they leave. Personally, I think I'm a little less optimistic about the whole thing than before I came.

Interesting post at Defense of the Realm, thinks the big strategy, at least for the Brits, is a dead end.

As for our Force, given the right direction, I've no doubt we'd see it through, although the performance of the ANA and ANP, one of the keystones of the strategy, is pretty appalling at times. The biggest problem is probably a lack of will and/or disinterest back home...

Read on, esp. the final three paragraphs that mention Canada (the last one deals with this matter).